UPDATE 1-Some crude production restarts as cool weather saps Canadian wildfire

(Adds details on operations)
By Eric M. Johnson
CALGARY, Alberta, May 24 (Reuters) - Some crude producers
restarted operations on Tuesday in Canada's energy heartland as
a mass evacuation of the Fort McMurray oil town entered its
fourth week, though cool weather and light winds were helping
firefighters dampen the blaze.
No oil facilities or communities were in the fire's path as
of Tuesday morning as its footprint grew slightly to 523,000
hectares (2,008 square miles) from roughly 522,900 hectares on
Monday, Alberta officials said at a news conference.
The blaze was spreading mainly across forested areas to the
east on Tuesday as firefighters were working to hold fire breaks
around prized oil sands facilities where crews have stripped
away tinder-dry trees and vegetation.
Firefighters from the United States and South Africa were
expected to join the fight in the next few days, the officials
said.
"We have some hot, dry conditions coming this week so we'll
really be put to the test here to see how that holds," Alberta
Wildfire Compliance and Investigations Manager Chad Morrison
said. "We feel fairly confident in the coming days that we'll
hold most of the ground there."
No rain has been forecast for Tuesday.
On Monday, authorities lifted evacuation orders for all work
camps in the area, a significant step for companies eager to
restart production. Workers could return to camps once safety
assessments were completed over the next two days.
The fire has shut down about half of the oil sands'
production capacity, though some producers are beginning to come
back online.
Athabasca Oil Corp ATH.TO resumed operations at its
Hangingstone site following a shutdown on May 5, before which
production volumes exceeded 9,000 barrels per day, the company
said in a statement on Tuesday. Athabasca said it expected to
return to normal operating levels over the next several weeks
with no anticipated long-term impacts.
Suncor Energy Inc SU.TO said on Monday it was preparing
for a staged restart of its operations, with some workers in the
area doing necessary "pre-work."
"Given our current assessment, we are confident we can
safely return people to the region to begin the process of
restarting operations," Suncor President and Chief Executive
Steve Williams said in a statement. "We believe that getting our
employees back to work is an important part of the process to
get things back to normal in Fort McMurray."
Some of the area's more than 90,000 evacuated residents may
be allowed to return starting on June 1, depending on air
quality and other factors.
The regional government published a pamphlet late on Monday
that recommended returnees bring at least two weeks' worth of
food, water and prescription medication.
Alberta officials said they were developing logistics plans
to guide the thousands of residents expected to return, many of
them to uninhabitable homes damaged by fire and smoke.
Challenges include limited medical services and labyrinthine
insurance claims, as well as dealing with black bears that have
been lured into the desolate neighborhoods by the scent of
rotting food.
The fire destroyed entire neighborhoods when it tore through
Fort McMurray on May 3 and 4, but most of the city remained
standing. Even so, insurers say the fire could be the most
expensive natural disaster in Canadian history, costing up to
C$9 billion.
"You are returning to a community that was profoundly
affected by a wildfire," the government pamphlet said. "Services
that you are used to or rely on may be limited for some time."
($1 = 1.3151 Canadian dollars)