On May 1, 2016, a wildfire began southwest of Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. On May 3, it swept through the community, forcing the largest wildfire evacuation in Alberta’s history, with upwards of 88,000 people forced from their homes. Firefighters were assisted by personnel from the Canadian Forces, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, other Canadian provincial agencies, to fight the wildfire.
Sweeping through Fort McMurray, the wildfire destroyed approximately 2,400 homes and buildings. Another 2,000 residents in three communities were displaced after their homes were declared unsafe for reoccupation due to contamination. The fire continued to spread across northern Alberta and into Saskatchewan, consuming forested areas and impacting Athabasca oil sands operations. With an estimated damage cost of C $9.9 billion, it was the costliest disaster in Canadian history.
The fire spread across approximately 590,000 hectares (1,500,000 acres) before it was declared to be under control on July 5, 2016. It continued to smoulder and was fully extinguished on August 2, 2017. It is suspected to have been caused by humans in a remote area 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from Fort McMurray, but no official cause has been determined to date