The Chuckegg Creek wildfire in the High Level area has officially been extinguished (Photo: Alberta Wildfire)

By Shaun Penner

Burned 334,772 Hectares

Chuckegg Creek wildfire extinguished 17 months after igniting

Oct 22, 2020 | 2:34 PM

After burning since May of 2019, the Chuckegg Creek wildfire near High Level has officially been extinguished.

Alberta Wildfire says in a release that the fire was officially extinguished on October 13. The fire burned a total of 334,772 hectares of forest, leading to numerous evacuations and the loss of structures, notably in the communities of High Level and Paddle Prairie Metis Settlement.

READ MORE: Homes lost to fire in Paddle Prairie

“Over the winter of 2019/2020, firefighters and local timber operators continued working to extinguish interior hotspots as well as open up access to areas for heavy equipment to work,” says Alberta Wildfire in a release. “This also included cutting down fire-damaged trees which were salvaged and used for lumber at local High Level Forest Area mills.”

They add that due to the high level of peat moss in the soil in that part of the province, many hot spots continued to burn over the winter.

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“Peat moss soil lacks moisture and contains woody debris, which can continue to burn even under a layer of snow.”

Wildfire crews put out several hot spots over the spring and summer, though they say heavier than usual rainfall in the area helped put the fire out, and even helped local drought conditions that have affected the area over the last five years.

They add that they wish to thank all of the wildland firefighters, structural fire departments, First Nations, industry and municipal partners who helped with the blaze.

“Extinguishing a wildfire of that size and strength is not an easy task, but it is an example of how cooperation between emergency responders and partners can lead to a successful conclusion.”