大象传媒

Thousands of people have been evacuated from the Canadian province of Alberta as unprecedented wildfires rage across the region. Dozens of fires are spread out across a large area, complicating the work of firefighters.

On Saturday, the authorities in Alberta declared a state of emergency in response to what the premier of the province, Danielle Smith, said was an unprecedented challenge.

This is said to be due to abnormally hot weather and high winds, but also quite possibly, due to the lack of resources as firefighters have been struggling to contain the disaster.

Andrea Schmidt, a resident of Edmonton, capital of the state of Alberta, Canada, told Newsday what the situation was like where she is.

鈥淚n all my years鈥� I鈥檝e never seen so many fires. It鈥檚 almost like living in hell. Surrounding the cities there are fires. Inside the city there鈥檚 been fires. It is very triggering for a lot of people [in terms of] mental health. Over 30,000 people have been evacuated because of wildfires.鈥�

(Pic: A wildfire raging through the town of Fort McMurray, Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada; Credit: EPA/Twitter user @jeromegarot)

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