Pre-registration for return flights to some NWT communities begins

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YELLOWKNIFE – It remains unclear when residents of the Northwest Territories’ South Slave region will be allowed to return home, but officials will open pre-registration for re-entry flights in advance.

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Jay Boast, an information officer for the territory’s emergency management agency, said online and telephone pre-registration for flights is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday for wildfire evacuees from the communities of Hay River, Enterprise and K’atl’odeeche First Nation.

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Yellowknife’s evacuation order was lifted Wednesday, but wildfire information officer Mike Westwick warned that no return was without risk, noting that there was a significant amount of smoke in the area on Sunday.

“It’s a live-with-fire condition, and that’s a reality that many communities have faced and will continue to face as we move forward through this wildfire season,” Westwick said during a wildfire briefing Monday.

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The City of Hay River was expected to provide an update on the re-entry timeline later Monday.

Mayor Kandis Jameson said Friday that if all goes well, residents could be home within 10 days.