2018 Census shows first population decrease in 20 years

PHOTO. Supplied. RMWB. Census 2018 is the first census taken since the 2016 Horse River wildfire.

More details from the 2018 census were revealed to council Tuesday night.

The first census since the 2016 Horse River wildfire shows the first decrease in population over the past 20 years.

Overall, the population has decreased from 125,032 in 2015 to 111,687, or by 10.67 per cent.

Although the population decreased, it has also identified that there are 7,821 new residents since the fire.

Of the total population, 36,678 people been included as shadow population. The majority of them living in project accommodations while 2,085 live in a residence and 1,538 stayed in hotels.

While many communities within Fort McMurray saw a decrease, Gregoire, Parsons Creek and Saline Creek didn’t.

Fort McKay comes in as the largest rural community in the region with 918 residents. It’s also the only hamlet that didn’t show a decrease.

The census also found that the majority of the population is male at 54.87 per cent. Women make up 45.07 per cent and 0.06 per cent of the population identify as transgender or other.

Housing also saw a decrease at 28,281 dwellings compared to 30,882 according to the 2015 census. Vacancies also dropped by 0.2 per cent.

Not surprisingly, 46.8 per cent of residents live in Timberlea, which includes Eagle Ridge and Stone Creek.