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6:53 a.m. Wednesday

Officials estimate 17,000 citizens fled north of Fort McMurray to find shelter at industrial sites. Another 35,000 headed south, including 18,000 people en route to Edmonton.

On Wednesday morning, the Alberta government took to social media to say that it would be escorting a fuel tanker along Highway 63 to help people who have been stranded without gas. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper Tuesday night as people packed families and pets into cars, trucks and campers. Lineups snaked around gas stations and late in the evening, RCMP were advising they would travel the highway with gas to assist stranded motorists. Residents reported on Twitter Tuesday night that Fort McMurray gas stations had run out of fuel.

AB Transportation is escorting a fuel tanker on Hwy 63 to assist stranded motorists. #ymmfire — AB Transportation (@ABTransComm) May 4, 2016

6 a.m. Wednesday

The City of Edmonton said 60 evacuees had arrived at Northlands in Edmonton by 6 a.m. Cots, food and water are available to any fleeing residents that can make their way to Alberta’s capital city.

“Anything that we can do to help the city of Fort McMurray through this challenging time, it’s a stressful upheaval, we will do that,” said Lori Cote, manager of public relations for Northlands, Tuesday night.

Northlands got the call for help from the City of Edmonton at around 9 p.m. and had its doors open to help within two hours.

Edmonton Emergency Service Response Team personnel had cots set up for up to 100 evacuees, who will also have access to washrooms, showers, food and hot beverages.

“We’re working directly with the Red Cross so what is needed we’ll do our best to provide until such time that it’s no longer needed, Cote said.

Another evacuation centre has been set up in Lac La Biche.

4 a.m. Wednesday

The Regional Municipality said Wednesday 80 per cent of the homes in the Beacon Hill neighbourhood have been destroyed. There was also destruction in the Abasand and Waterways areas. Wood Buffalo is reported as damaged, but not as severely as Beacon Hill. A dozen trailers were lost on McKinlay Crescent in Timberlea, two houses are gone in Dickinsfield and one house each has burned in Grayling Terrace, downtown and Thickwood. Damage was still being assessed for Draper. Residences were not affected in Gregoire and Saline Creek.

10 p.m. Tuesday

Late Tuesday, officials were predicting “a more intense burning day” on Wednesday as strong wind gusts and high temperatures were expected to persist. The forecast high temperature today in Fort McMurray is 30 C.

Night fell Tuesday with fires having damaged many parts of the city of 83,000 people.

“We are firefighting as we speak and homes are on fire as we speak,” Wood Buffalo fire chief Darby Allen said during a 10 p.m. news conference Tuesday. “It’s not a question of how far away it is any more, it’s here.”

Earlier Tuesday

A fire of about 1,250 hectares had menaced the southwest entrance to Fort McMurray since the Sunday, putting small pockets of the city, located about 435 kilometres northwest of Edmonton, on evacuation alert. By 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo announced all of Fort McMurray had to leave.

Fort McMurray’s geography complicated the evacuation. Highway 63 is the only route in or out — north and south.

Hundreds of trucks, cars, motorcycles and mobile homes had pulled over to the side of the highway, suffering from engines choked by smoke or running low on gas. People sat dazed, many in tears. Emergency officials said Tuesday night that Fort McMurray, and many of the surrounding communities, were emptied of gas.

Traffic was bumper-to-bumper as people packed families and pets into cars, trucks and campers. Lineups snaked around gas stations and late in the evening Tuesday, RCMP were advising they would travel the highway with gas to assist stranded motorists.

And work camps to the north of Fort McMurray where evacuees were being directed, such as the Noralta Lodge, reported they were filling up Tuesday evening.

Despite the mass evacuation, there were no reports of serious injuries as of Tuesday night.

Alberta Health Services said 105 patients were hurriedly removed from the Northern Lights Regional Health Centre early Tuesday evening. They were to be moved to Edmonton overnight after a AHS managed to arrange for a 737 to collect patients from a landing strip in the far north.

The last time Alberta faced a fire-related evacuation of this magnitude was in 2011, when nearly 9,000 people were forced from Slave Lake and nearby communities for 12 days after a wildfire caught the community by surprise on May 14, 2011, and destroyed hundreds of homes.

A cold front is expected to hit Fort McMurray mid-afternoon Wednesday and emergency officials expect the day will continue to be focused on fighting fires.

Emergency officials said there were 150 firefighters in the Fort McMurray area Tuesday and 70-to-80 were coming. The municipality has received offers of help from across the country, including Edmonton, and has asked for more assistance in the form of equipment, and also supplies of food, water and fuel.

The municipality asked for help from the Canadian military. That help is about two days away.

“We’re predicting some gusty winds,” said Bernie Schmitte, wildfire manager at Alberta Agriculture and Forestry said of the Wednesday forecast. “We’ll have to see what comes of that but we are definitely going to be challenged.”