Eastern Canada's Halifax declares emergency over wildfire

The eastern Canadian city of Halifax declared a state of local emergency late on Sunday after a wildfire caused evacuations and power outages.

"Emergency responders are working around the clock to keep people safe and reduce the threats posed by the fires," the municipal authority in the capital of Nova Scotia province said in a press release. The fire sent a huge pall of smoke over the port city.

The state of emergency would be in effect for seven days, unless lifted or extended, the municipality said. Nova Scotia Power had temporarily disconnected power in the affected area, it said on Twitter.

Telecommunications firms including Rogers and Bell Canada's Bell Aliant said in posts on Twitter that some customers in communities evacuated due to wildfires may experience services disruption. This month, the western province of Alberta declared a provincial state of emergency after tens of thousands of people were forced from their homes as unprecedented wildfires raged.

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