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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Kyler Zeleny in Parkland County and Leyland Cecco in Victoria

‘Fighting a losing battle’: waves of wildfires leave Canada’s volunteer firefighters drained

Members of Parkland county check for hot spots in muskeg soil near the town of Entwistle, Alberta.
Members of Parkland county check for hot spots in muskeg soil near the town of Entwistle, Alberta. Photograph: Kyler Zeleny/The Guardian

Earlier this summer, a wildfire crept – and then sprinted – towards Fox Creek, a community of fewer than 2,000 in north-west Alberta. At one point, the crackling wall of flames and thick black smoke moved more than 30 miles in a single day, prompting frantic evacuations from the town.

“It was terrifying,” said Angela Martineau, a paramedic who lives in the community. “I was told it was going to be on my doorstep at this time, then at this time… [There were] a lot of anxieties and emotions for those first six days”.

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