Thorhild will get $10M for wildfire relief
Thorhild will get $10M for wildfire relief
08 July 2010
published by www.edmontonjournal.com
Canada — Thorhild County will receive $10 million from the provincial government to help recover from severe wildfires in May.
A state of local emergency was called as a 3,000-hectare wildfire raged near the hamlet of Opal for more than a week, destroying one rural home and several farm buildings.
“The effects of severe wildfires, such as the ones that the County of Thorhild experienced, can be devastating,” Hector Goudreau, minister of municipal affairs, said in a news release announcing the relief funding through the Municipal Wildfire Assistance Program.
Thorhild Reeve Charles Newell said the wildfires have cost the county $8.5 million so far in emergency operations and restoration efforts.
With a yearly revenue of $6.5 million, the county would have been forced to cut programs and services without the assistance.
The major wildfire was likely caused by an all-terrain vehicle travelling through the area in hot, dry weather on May 12, Thorhild officials said.
Rain and cooler temperatures helped almost 300 firefighters get the fire under control almost 10 days later.
