Photo credit: CBC
Canada’s Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan says Canadian military personnel, their equipment and another 250 firefighters stand “ready to support our American neighbours” as wildfires devastate parts of Southern California.
Nsauga reports that his pledge comes as the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre said Thursday that the US National Interagency Fire Centre asked for two of its CL–415 Skimmer Airtankers to join the fight against the fires.
Canadians caught in the wildfires in Los Angeles described scenes of panic and horror as thousands of buildings went up in flames.
Officials have said hurricane-force winds began igniting one neighbourhood after another on Wednesday in the coastal area of Pacific Palisades and in Altadena, near Pasadena.
Five people have died, more than 100,000 people have been forced to leave their homes, and famous landmarks have come under threat.
Nearly 2,000 homes, businesses and other structures have been destroyed, and the number is expected to increase.
