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People hoping to make the long drive back north to Yellowknife, Dettah, Ndilǫ and the Ingraham Trail Wednesday started the day with some good news: highways were open and weather looked good.
Roadblocks leading toward Yellowknife are set to be cleared away by noon, when the evacuation order lifts. Power was restored Monday in Fort Providence and gas is once again available for people driving north.
CBC’s Natalie Pressman will be updating you on this page on everything from road and fire conditions to what city and territorial officials have to say throughout the day.
Refresh this page to see the latest updates.
8:56 p.m.: Here’s an update from Yellowknife Mayor Rebecca Alty:
As Yellowknife residents return after the wildfire evacuations, Mayor Rebecca Alty says ‘the basic services are ready to go’ but asks for patience. The city worked with experts to put in a number of firebreaks considered critical to safeguard some areas, she says.
8:41 a.m.: The N.W.T.’s highway conditions map shows HIghway 1 into the N.W.T. as open. If you’re coming through there, expect to slow down around the Deh Cho Bridge, which will be single-lane traffic with short delays.
Our reporter Liny Lamberink caught up with some travellers in Fort Providence before they began the trek north. She says it was pretty quiet there this morning, with not a lot of people trickling in to gas up.
She spoke with Janice Clement, who told us she slept in her car by the Snowshoe Inn gift shop after driving in Wednesday. She’s anxious to get home with her cat Teddy, who’s been having a tough time during this evacuation. She’s expecting to arrive early at the checkpoint between Behchokǫ̀ and Yellowknife. “I hope they’ll have pity on me and let me through,” she said with a laugh — next stop, home, where she can let Teddy out of his crate and give him a cuddle.
Liny spoke with Roger Carrasqueira, too, who left Fort McMurray at 6 p.m. last night and has been driving ever since. He hopes to be home before noon if he’s let through the roadblock, and is looking forward to “getting back to normal.”
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