Hundreds of people, including 225 inmates from a high-security prison, were evacuated in Canada on Sunday as the summer fire season began, according to 20minutes.
The emergency was declared locally on Friday as wildfires threatened the city of Port-Cartier. The federal prison facility in Port-Cartier, located approximately 500 kilometers northeast of Quebec City, was evacuated along with about a thousand residents over the weekend.
Famous Inmates Transferred
The prison housed some of the country's most infamous inmates, including several serial killers. It has been closed temporarily, and the inmates "have been safely transferred from the affected area to other secure federal penitentiary institutions," stated Anne Kelly, Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada.
Further north, 750 employees working at a hydroelectric dam in Newfoundland and Labrador province were also relocated. The power plant supplies electricity to several regions.
Canada Remembers Devastating Wildfires of 2023
Wildfires had ravaged Canada from east to west in 2023, burning over 15 million hectares of land. The fires claimed the lives of eight firefighters and forced authorities to evacuate more than 235,000 people.
The current evacuations due to the fires near Port-Cartier echo the challenges faced during last year's extensive wildfire season, highlighting the ongoing threat posed by wildfires in Canada's vast and diverse landscape.
