The company,
A Suncor spokeswoman said the move was a precautionary measure, but added the situation was being monitored and further action would be taken if necessary.
Suncor said its other oilsands operations were not at risk.
As of Thursday afternoon, a wildfire spanning more than 21 square kilometres in size was burning out of control about 70 kilometres northeast of
The
Suncor's Firebag oilsands site is the company's largest in situ operation. In oilsands terminology, in situ means using steam to heat up and loosen underground bitumen that is too deep underground to be accessed through surface mining.
The facility produces up to 215,000 barrels of oil per day, and employs a fly-in, fly-out work force from across the country.
The company's website says there are typically about 400 people at the site each day.
In
During the peak of that crisis, more than one million barrels per day of Canadian oil production were shut in.
Firebag takes its name from the leather bag used by Indigenous peoples to carry hot coals for fire-starting purposes.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published
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