Page 29 - MENU Mag - July/August 2017

ALMANAC
HELL
OR HIGH
WATER
When natural disaster strikes, are you ready? BY WILL DIXON
HELL
One year ago, the working area of Fort McMurray—tucked away in the Regional Municipality of Wood Bu alo, Alberta—was hit by
one of the country’s largest wild res and stands as Canada’s costliest natural disaster to date. The damage done to the Albertan landscape, its people and its businesses has been measured in the billions.
The “beast,” as re ghters referred to the wild re, was sparked on May 1, 2016. Two days later, the inferno had ripped through the commu- nity of Fort McMurray, necessitating a mass evacuation. Almost 1,800 homes were destroyed and 88,000 people evacuated. The community was all but devastated.
Colleen Stewart is food and beverage, and tournament director at the Fort McMurray Golf Course. “I think this is a very safety-conscious town,” she says. “There’s always re drills.” It was a full course day when the re hit, players at all 18 holes and people in the restaurant. Around one o’clock the call from the re department came in, ordering an evacua- tion. “Everyone was incredible, how orderly they made it,” details Stew- art. When the re jumped the Athabasca River, it was pretty quick.
Satellite images show the scars left by the re, but the golf course greens remained mostly intact thanks to irrigation during the blaze. “There are some changes on our old back nine that you would notice,” says Stewart. “But for the most part, the most damage it did was to our buildings.” The clubhouse and maintenance shed were lost in the blaze, but for now, they’re making do with tents and trailers as they begin to
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Photo courtesy of Chris Schwarz/Government of Alberta