Canada wildfires: Hopes raised in battle to contain blaze

Canada has reached a turning point, partly thanks to drizzle and favourable winds, say officials.

One minister warned much work lay ahead but "we may be turning a corner".

A fifth of homes in the oil sands city of Fort McMurray have been destroyed and more than 80,000 people evacuated.

But the fire had not spread as fast as had been feared, said Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, who will survey the devastation on Monday.

"With a bit of help from Mother Nature and a lot of help from firefighters and first responders, the fire grew a lot more slowly than we feared," she said.

On Saturday, officials had said they expected it to double in size.

The fire covered 1,610 sq km (621 square miles) on Sunday morning, said Ms Notley, and was about 30-40km from the neighbouring province, Saskatchewan.

There have been no deaths from the fire but Ms Notley became emotional when she paid tribute to two evacuees who died in a car accident during the evacuation.