Canada wildfires disrupt mines, force 14,000 from their homes

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-canada-wildfire-idUSKBN19V23X

July 10, 2017
By Ethan Lou | CALGARY, Alberta

Rapidly spreading wildfires in British Columbia disrupted operations at two mining companies and damaged public utilities on Monday as 14,000 people were forced from their homes in the interior of the Western Canadian province.

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About 218 fires were burning, with at least 10 close to residential communities, Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told reporters. The fires are scattered across an area ranging from 150 km (95 miles) to 350 km (215 miles) northeast of Vancouver.

Some 38,000 hectares (93,900 acres) had been ravaged as of midday on Monday, up from 24,000 on Sunday, according to official tallies.

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An estimated 14,000 people had been forced from their homes as of midday on Monday, about double the number on Sunday, said Assistant Deputy Minister Bob Turner of British Columbia's Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.

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