Residents have been told by officials they have to clear out of Yellowknife by Friday afternoon..The citywide evacuation was issued Thursday night as thousands of people hit the road south to Alberta..The Northwest Territories (NWT) government has taken over the reins from the City of Yellowknife, putting a fire retardant line down beyond the work that the city is doing for additional protection..“The fire now represents a real threat to the city,” Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs Shane Thompson said at a news conference..READ MORE: Fire 16 km from Yellowknife as winds increase, Territorial State of Emergency ordered.Pursuant to Section 17 of the Emergency Management Act and following the declaration of a state of emergency by the NWT government, Thompson has directed that residents of the City of Yellowknife, Ndılǫ, Dettah and Ingraham Trail begin evacuating..READ MORE: WATCH: NWT RCMP says Long Lake fire in Yellowknife was arson, four youths charged.Residents living along the Ingraham Trail, in Dettah, Kam Lake, Grace Lake and Engle Business District are currently at the highest risk and should evacuate as soon as possible. Other residents have until noon on Friday..Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will hold a meeting to discuss the wildfires which have prompted the evacuation of the capital city. According to Government of Canada reports, there are more than 230 wildfires burning and up to 20,000 sq. km. have burned while thousands of residents have fled their homes.."Right now the cities are evacuating lots of people left between yesterday and today," Owner of Gastown in Yellowknife Jamie Pye told the Western Standard on Thursday.."We kept the gas station opened up right up until we ran out of fuel and then I’ll shut her down and I am ready to leave.".Pye said it wasn't his decision to leave; he would have stayed as long as he could to make sure people have full tanks before hitting the highway.."All of my staff have left, right now they need my fuel supplier. All fuel is designated for emergency services and so that’s why I’m no longer able to keep open," Pye said.."Smoke is very thick in the city this morning. More people are steadily leaving," Pye said.."They do have free fuel for evacuees at Steen River and water as well. I believe there is more help along the way. I had one customer yesterday who counted over 700 vehicles on his way into Yellowknife from Behchoko in the lineup to leave.".On Thursday, officials said a wildfire 16 km west of Yellowknife could reach it by the weekend.."We know everyone is looking for information," NWT Fire stated.."We're doing our best to work with our crews who are actively fighting fires across the territory to get updates out."....more to come
