Maria Canton
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 20/99) - A convoy of more than 40 cars waited outside of Rae-Edzo late Wednesday night for a police escort through a stretch of highway made smoky by a forest fire threatening Edzo.

Tourists, travellers and businesspeople were stranded this side of Rae-Edzo for a day and a half after a forest fire jumped the highway, leaving the ditches smouldering and reducing visibility to less than half a kilometre. Fire officials closed Highway 3 at suppertime on Tuesday, hours after lightning ignited a fire that saw the evacuation of 300 people from Edzo.

A decision was made Wednesday afternoon to let escorted convoys of vehicles through between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., when the fire was at its quietest.

"We're trying to get to Winnipeg," said Pauline Michelin, who had started out at 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning and then waited more than 10 hours.

Michelin was travelling with friend Christine O'Toole, both women were leaving Yellowknife to return to university.

"This is holding up our plans," said O'Toole.

"Right now we just want to get to Edmonton."

Other tourists spent extra time at Fred Henne Park waiting to hear the verdict from the RCMP.

"We aren't full, but we do have people who were planning to leave and couldn't," said park attendant Nicole Thiessen.

"A lot waited out the day and then left around 8 p.m. hoping to get on the first convoy out."

A traveller from Portland, Oregon said she was driving into Yellowknife when she saw the fire start.

"It was probably about 10 minutes into it," said Chris Jonas, who was waiting in the convoy on her way to Whitehorse.

"The Mounties told me I may get stranded in town, but I didn't believe them. I've lost a day and a half of holiday time, but it's a natural cause that started it." On the other side of the fire, cars lined the highway outside of Fort Providence.

A heavy downpour of rain began at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday and by the time the convoy started, fire officials declared the emergency over.

Although the fire continues to burn out of control, Highway 3 will remain open with some delays.

Residents of Edzo were also allowed back into their homes Wednesday evening at about 10 p.m.