Mayor Alain Thibault has declared a state of emergency for a period of five days.
The forest fires that forced the evacuation of 1,000 residents Friday evening has not improved, Port-Cartier municipal authorities said Saturday morning.
“The situation is the same” as the day before. “It’s the status quo, nothing has changed,” said the city’s general director, Nicolas Mayrand, at a press conference.
The mayor of Port-Cartier, Alain Thibault, declared a state of emergency for a period of five days.
The MP for the Duplessis constituency, Kateri Champagne-Jourdain, announced at the press conference the government of Quebec would offer the same financial assistance as last year, up to $1,500 for each primary residence evacuated.
“The government will continue to be there for you. We will provide the same support as last year,” Champagne-Jourdain promised, adding she remains in “constant contact” with the minister of Public Security, François Bonnardel, and the minister of Natural Resources and Forests, Maïté Blanchette Vézina, in order to follow “the situation very closely.”
The mayor thanked citizens for their quick response. “Everything was done quickly and efficiently. Everything went well. There was no major accident,” Thibault said.
The fire is currently 13 kilometres from Port-Cartier, as was the case Friday evening.