Canada. A wildfire has nearly destroyed Lytton, the town where the heat record was set
Environment — di Valentina Neri
After reaching a record temperature of 49.5 degrees Celsius, the Canadian town of Lytton was struck by a devastating wildfire.
Canada. A wildfire has nearly destroyed Lytton, the town where the heat record was set
After reaching a record temperature of 49.5 degrees Celsius, the Canadian town of Lytton was struck by a devastating wildfire.
Over the past few days, the name of Lytton has echoed around the world — a Canadian village of around 250 inhabitants in the Vancouver region. It was there, on Tuesday 29 June, that a temperature of 49.5 degrees Celsius was recorded, the highest ever in Canadian history, a stark manifestation of a heat dome that has caused the deaths of nearly 500 people. From now on, "there won't be much left" of Lytton. Those are the words of Mayor Jan Polderman, speaking to the BBC just hours after a devastating wildfire had almost completely destroyed the town.
A forest fire that ignited after days of record-breaking temperatures has destroyed most of the small Canadian town of Lytton in central British Columbia reut.rs/2Ukk8CY
The BBC attempted to piece together the events, documented by several videos circulating on social media in the hours that followed. On Wednesday 30 June, the town was engulfed in smoke and residents fled in a hurry in their cars.
The fire had broken out further south but spread during the evening, driven by strong winds and gaining strength and speed due to the exceptionally hot and dry weather conditions. Information is still coming in and remains partial, but it appears that there were some injuries and that homes and infrastructure were destroyed. Displaced residents were taken in by neighbouring communities.