St. John's is hosting the Canada Games, with thousands of people visiting the city as either spectators or participants in the event. As wildfires burn across the province, N.L. Premier John Hogan says the situation is being closely monitored.

St. John's

The Canada Summer Games are underway in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, with over 4,000 youth athletes competing in 17 sports. The event is taking place as several wildfires continue to burn in the province, causing heightened concerns about air quality.

Officials, including Premier John Hogan, have stated that athlete and evacuee safety is the top priority, and the situation is being closely monitored. While some areas near the wildfires have seen improvements, allowing evacuees to return home, organisers have not made any changes to event venues at this time. The atmosphere remains positive among athletes and organisers, with opening ceremonies and competitions moving forward as planned.

Canada Games underway in St. John's despite wildfires

One area of the country with heightened concerns about air quality is St. John's. The city is playing host to the Canada Summer Games. Over 4,000 of this country's best youth athletes will compete in 17 different sporting events. The CBC's Jessica Singer is outside the venue where the opening ceremony will begin later tonight. Jessica, you and I have been catching up throughout the week. It's the best of times, it's the worst of times in St. John's. How might the Canada Summer Games be affected by the wildfire situation? Yeah, so as you mentioned there, Deanna, right now I'm standing outside the Mary Brown Centre in the heart of downtown St. John's. I can tell you that today it has been incredibly hot, around 27 degrees Celsius. Of course, the air is a little heavier than usual because of the smoke. There are three wildfires that are still labeled as out of control through the province. However, we were just in a news conference for the Canada Games. There's a lot of excitement in the air, even though there is a little bit of smoke in the air, and Premier John Hogan was speaking at that news conference. He said the province is ready to rock and roll despite the smoke, but it's something they're keeping an eye on. Take a listen to what he has to say. The team is going to continue to monitor it and work with Dr. Fitzgerald to make sure that the athletes are safe. It is unfortunate, but of course the safety of the evacuees, the safety of the athletes is always going to be the priority. We're not interested in putting anybody at risk for the Canada Games. So there, as you heard, the Canada Games are still going ahead as planned. However, Premier John Hogan did say in that news conference that he was going to give us an update in around half an hour, 6 p.m. local time. Because the situation has gotten worse, he didn't specify more of what that meant in the news conference, but we do believe that that is pertaining to the wildfire that is about two hours away from the city, the one raging out of control in Kingston, Conception Bay North area. However, good news, as you mentioned there, that many evacuees have been able to go back home in the Holy Road and Conception Bay South area. That's quite notable for the Canada Games because we do know that soccer matches are going to be held in Conception Bay South, which was right near the wildfire that is still labelled as out of control in Holy Road. Fortunately, it seems the situation is getting better there as evacuees are able to go back home. We know that organisers say there hasn't been any changes to venues or anything just yet, but we're keeping an eye on that because, of course, things change so frequently and so quickly with the wildfire situation here in this province. But the energy is still incredibly positive here today. There are so many young athletes that are so excited to meet people from across the country. We just met the flag bearers inside representing all of the provinces and territories, and they're all going to be marching in an athlete's parade happening later tonight, 7 p.m. local time, here at the Mary Brown Centre behind me. So a lot of excitement waiting to happen. Fingers crossed that none of that smoke impacts that excitement and the Canada Games going forward. Excitement undiminished. Thank you so much for that. Jessica, that's CBC's Jessica Singer in St. John's.

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