Evacuation Order issued for Abasand, Beacon Hill, Prairie Creek and Grayling Terrace

An evacuation order has been issued for Abasand, Beacon Hill, Prairie Creek, and Grayling Terrace due to the wildfire southwest of Fort McMurray.

Those in need of accommodation or support were encouraged to report to the Parkland One registration centre in Lac La Biche, but accommodation is now full. Those in need are now asked to report to the new reception centre at the Cold Lake Agriplex located at 4608 38th Avenue.

Evacuees are strongly encouraged to leave Fort McMurray but may stay in other neighbourhoods if they wish. Residents not located in the four neighbourhoods under an evacuation order are asked to give evacuees time to get out of Fort McMurray before departing.

Highway 63 northbound lanes are closed to allow more southbound traffic. Wood Buffalo RCMP announced the temporary closure at 4:30 PM Tuesday afternoon. There is no estimated time for the northbound lanes to reopen.

In the last report from Alberta Wildfire, the fire has grown to 20,940 hectares in size. The fire is 7.5 kilometres from the Fort McMurray landfill and 6.5 kilometres from the Highways 63 and 881 intersection. Winds pushed the fire to the east and northeast on Tuesday.

Firefighters have been pulled from the fire line for safety reasons. helicopters and air tankers are dropping water on the active edges of the fire.

All residents living in areas under the Evacuation Order are asked to register as an evacuee on the MyAlberta Emergency Registration System.

Evacuation muster points are listed below:

Abasand:
Muster Point: Parking lot across from the Abasand Skate Park and Ice rink parking lot by Fr. Beauregard School
Egress road: Abasand Drive or Abbottsford Drive

Beacon Hill:
Muster point: Frank LaCroix Arena
Egress road: Beacon Hill Dr.

Grayling Terrace:
Muster Point: Greyling Park
Egress road: Abbottsford Drive

Prairie Creek:
Muster Point: Arabian Drive bus stop and Rodeo Drive bus stop
Egress road: Airport road to 63, then 63 south

Earlier Tuesday afternoon, RMWB declared a State of Local Emergency due to the wildfire burning southwest of the city. The SOLE allows the municipality to access additional resources and powers under the Emergency Management Act and applies to the entire municipality.

An evacuation alert is still in place for the communities of Fort McMurray, Saprae Creek, Anzac, Fort McMurray First Nation #468 and Gregoire Lake Estates.