Wildfires ripped through Lytton, British Columbia, on Wednesday - two days after it broke Canada s temperature record
Roughly 1,000 people in and around Lytton fled from their homes as flames engulfed the town in minutes
The extent of the damage was revealed on Thursday as officials said most homes and structures were razed
Officials said it could take days for the region to be deemed safe enough for first responders to begin searching the wreckage for possible fatalities
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is working to locate an unspecified number of missing residents
Dozens of families who evacuated when the fire swept in are now desperately searching for their loved ones
Thursday, July 01, 2021, 08:53 GMT+7
Smoke and flames are seen during the Sparks Lake wildfire at Thompson-Nicola Regional District, British Columbia, Canada, June 29, 2021, in this image obtained via social media. Photo: BC WILDFIRE SERVICE via REUTERS
A heatwave that smashed all-time high temperature records in western Canada and the U.S. Northwest has left a rising death toll in its wake as officials brace for more sizzling weather and the threat of wildfires.
The worst of the heat had passed by Wednesday, but the state of Oregon reported 63 deaths linked to the heatwave. Multnomah County, which includes Portland, reported 45 of those deaths since Friday, with the county Medical Examiner citing hyperthermia as the preliminary cause.