Raging wildfires which have ripped across parts of Canada's British Columbia in recent weeks have put the Barkerville Historic Town, one of the province's largest historical tourist destinations, dangerously at risk.
Sweltering conditions from a heat wave which has gripped Western Canada since early July resulted in many wildfires breaking out, with more than 300 fires erupting across British Columbia towards the end of last month.
One blaze came very close to the Barkerville Historic Town, which was named after a British prospector who found gold there in 1862, forcing it to be closed to the public while firefighters tried to secure the area.
The town has been recognized as a national heritage site in Canada for around a century, with many of its historic buildings being restored and maintained to retain their original look.
The small town also drew an influx of Chinese miners during the 19th century gold rush, where traces of their past lives are still preserved. A total of 125 heritage buildings are still in use in the town, making it a living history museum.
"We do have a large repository of Chinese artifacts. Barkerville's population at the height of our gold rush was one-third to one-half Chinese," said Stewart Cawood, the town's manager for public programming and media.
Following nearly two weeks of closure amid evacuation orders, the historic town was set to re-open on Friday, according to a notice published on a British Colombia tourism site.
Raging wildfires put historic Canadian town at risk
Raging wildfires put historic Canadian town at risk
Raging wildfires put historic Canadian town at risk
To celebrate the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, Chimelong Safari Park in Guangzhou City of Guangdong Province, south China introduced to visitors baby panda Mei Zhu, the daughter of Meng Meng, the oldest sister of the world's only surviving panda triplets, and prepared a series of activities on Friday.
Mei Zhu, aged only 87 days, is in good health and just began teething. But the baby panda always gets a bit cranky after milk feedings, and requires panda keepers to spend around half an hour to calm her down.
"As a young panda, her digestive system is still developing, and excessive activity after feeding can lead to digestive issues. She is quite energetic now. If she found any strangers entering her enclosure and they wanted to, for example, pet her, she would be quite defensive, due to her self-protection instincts," said Chen Siming, a wildlife conservation expert.
Another star panda in the zoo, Guo Qing, also received his present, a pile of mooncake-shaped wowotou (a type of steamed corn bread). Guo Qing was of good appetite, which amused many of his fans.
"I am here just to see her. I drove 38 kilometers just to watch her mischief. She is very famous for that, always causing trouble when her keeper is not around," said a visitor.
The koalas are also welcoming guests. Totaling over 70 koalas in the park, more than 40 of them were presented to visitors by their keepers. The chubby animals constitute a big family of eight generations, with the youngest being 2 years old and the oldest reaching 19, much older than the average lifespan of the species.
"We've sent technicians to Australia to learn how to feed the Koalas, pick up veterinary and health care skills. With our valuable experience gained through years of raising the koalas, we are able to provide them good environment, food, and medical care. As a result, the average lifespan of the troop is getting longer," said a koala keeper.
In addition to these highlights, Chimelong Safari Park is also planning a series of animal enrichment events and sharing stories of the animals with the visitors during the Mid-Autumn Festival vacation.
Safari park in Guangzhou presents baby panda to celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival
