EDMONTON — This year’s summer of fire in Western Canada has been a real test on many fronts… leaving a lot of people with the wrong kind of memories. …The fires and accompanying evacuations have also created a lot of pressure on Edmonton, and in particular for our emergency reception facility at the Expo Centre. The venue was stood up in response to three major evacuations — Drayton Valley, Edson and Yellowknife. …The centre has so far been active for 55 days and has assisted more than 12,300 evacuees. …With Edmonton situated on the edge of huge swaths of boreal forest to the west and north, and with climate change ready to serve up bigger, longer and more severe wildfire seasons, our city is going to have an increasingly common role as an evacuation hub.