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Wildfire forces closure of Highway 43 northwest of Edmonton

Part of a major highway in northwest Alberta was closed Thursday afternoon because of an out-of-control wildfire burning near the road.

The north and south-bound lanes of Highway 43 were blocked off between the communities of Fox Creek and Little Smoky because of the fire, burning about 55,020 hectares in size.

A CTV News Edmonton crew was on scene around 3:30 p.m. and captured images of a long line of semi trucks pulled over on the side of the highway.

Many drivers were turning around and heading back to Valleyview, which saw an evacuation order lifted on Thursday.

RCMP said the closure was expected to last for "several hours." Drivers were asked to avoid the area.

The closure was about 300 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

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