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A28 u.s. news
Diamars 10 augustus 2021

Canada reopens its border for vaccinated US visitors

der waits. Travelers also must forward to “just mentally ern New York crossings, the
fill out a detailed application making sure everything’s Peace Bridge in Buffalo and
on the arriveCAN app before OK. the Lewiston-Queenston
crossing. Bridge in Lewiston.
“It’s just been a part of my life
On the first morning that because my grandma had a The U.S.-Canada border has
U.S. citizens were allowed cottage since I was 10, so just been closed to nonessential
to cross into Canada again, kind of a feeling like return- travel since March 2020 to
it was slow going in the ing to normal,” she said. try to slow the spread of the
tiny border town of Derby coronavirus.
Line, Vermont, where long The pharmacy clinic was
stretches passed without any charging $140 for same-day The U.S. has said it will ex-
cars headed into downtown tests and $125 for delivery of tend its closure to all Canadi-
Stanstead, Quebec. results in 24 to 48 hours. ans making nonessential trips
until at least Aug. 21, which
In Buffalo, New York, Lisa “At this point, we’ll just do also applies to the Mexican
and Jim Docherty got CO- whatever we have to do,” Lisa border. But the Biden ad-
(AP) — Canada lifted its VID-19 tests at a pharmacy Docherty said before heading ministration is beginning to
prohibition on Americans U.S. citizens and legal resi- for their first visit to their in for a nasal swab. make plans for a phased re-
crossing the border to dents must be both fully Ridgeway, Ontario, cottage opening. The main require-
shop, vacation or visit on vaccinated and test negative since the summer of 2019. By early afternoon, passen- ment would be that nearly
Monday while the United for COVID-19 within three The Hilton, South Carolina ger cars were waiting more all foreign visitors to the U.S.
States is maintaining sim- days to get across one of the couple, originally from Buf- than an hour at the Rain- will have to be vaccinated
ilar restrictions for Ca- world’s longest and busiest falo, has had the cottage more bow Bridge to enter Niagara against the coronavirus.
nadians, part of a bumpy land borders, and Canadian than 40 years. Falls, Ontario, from Niagara
return to normalcy from officials warn they won’t sac- Falls, New York. There were But Canadians aren’t waiting
COVID-19 travel bans. rifice safety for shorter bor- Lisa Doherty said she looked no delays at two other west- for reciprocal rules.

Aircraft help fight California wildfire as smoke clears

(AP) - Thick smoke that liminary because assessment caused 2020 fires across seven change have made wildfires fighters prevented further
held down winds and teams can’t get into many ar- counties that were fought to- harder to fight in the Ameri- growth of the River Fire,
temperatures in the zone eas, officials said. gether and that state officials can West. Scientists have said which broke out Wednesday
of the largest single wild- consider California’s largest climate change has made the near the community of Col-
fire in California history The Dixie Fire, named for wildfire overall. region much warmer and fax and destroyed 68 homes.
cleared Monday from sce- the road where it started drier in the past 30 years and
nic forestlands, allowing nearly four weeks ago, grew The fire’s cause was under will continue to make the Smoke from wildfires burn-
firefighting aircraft to re- to an area of 765 square miles investigation. Pacific Gas & weather more extreme and ing in the U.S. West contin-
join the battle to contain (1,980 square kilometers) by Electric has said it may have wildfires more frequent and ues to flow into parts of Col-
the massive Dixie Fire. Sunday evening and was just been sparked when a tree fell destructive. orado and Utah, where the
21% contained, according to on one of its power lines. A air quality in many areas was
The newly clear skies will al- the California Department of federal judge ordered PG&E Northwest of the Dixie Fire rated as unhealthy. Denver’s
low more than two dozen he- Forestry and Fire Protection. on Friday to give details by in the Shasta-Trinity Nation- air quality improved on Sun-
licopters and two air tankers It had scorched an area more Aug. 16 about the equipment al Forest, hundreds of homes day, but the smoke has made
that have been grounded to than twice the size of New and vegetation where the fire remained threatened by two the air there and in Salt Lake
fly again and make it safer for York City. started. fires that continued to grow. City among the worst in the
ground crews to maneuver. About a quarter of the Mc- world.
Four firefighters were taken Gov. Gavin Newsom sur- Farland Fire was contained.
“With this kind of weather, to the hospital Friday after be- veyed the damage in Green- New evacuation orders were California’s fire season is on
fire activity will pick up. But ing struck by a fallen branch. ville over the weekend, issued Monday for residents track to surpass last year’s
the good thing is we can get More than 30 people were writing on Twitter that “our near the Monument Fire, season, which was the worst
aircraft up,” said fire spokes- initially reported missing, hearts ache for this town.” which was only about 3% in recent recorded state his-
man Ryan Bain. but by Monday the Plumas contained. tory.
County Sheriff’s Office had Heat waves and histor-
Winds were not expected to accounted for all of them. ic drought tied to climate South of the Dixie Fire, fire-
reach the ferocious speeds
that helped the blaze explode With smoke clearing out
in size last week. But they above eastern portions of
were still a concern for fire- the fire, crews that had been
fighters working in unprec- directly attacking the front
edented conditions to pro- lines would be forced to re-
tect thousands of threatened treat and build containment
homes. lines farther back, said Dan
McKeague, a fire information
Fueled by powerful gusts officer from the U.S. Forest
and bone-dry vegetation, the Service.
fire incinerated much of the
small community of Green- The blaze became the larg-
ville last Wednesday and est single fire in California’s
Thursday. At least 627 homes recorded history, surpassing
and other structures had last year’s Creek Fire in the
been destroyed by Monday the state’s central valley agri-
and another 14,000 buildings cultural region.
were still threatened in the
northern Sierra Nevada. The Dixie Fire is about half
the size of the August Com-
Damage reports are pre- plex, a series of lightning-