Scorched ground, phot courtesy Alberta Wildfire

By Erika Rolling

Wildfires

Regional wildfires growing due to winds and high temperatures, crews unable to work

May 15, 2023 | 9:04 AM

Following hot, dry, and windy conditions over the Mother’s Day weekend, six fires in the Grande Prairie Forest Area are burning rapidly and growing due to weather conditions and ground crews were unable to fight some fires due to safety concerns.

Brush fires in Muskoseepi Park on Sunday afternoon were extinguished with the assistance of helicopters that provided insight of the location of the fires. Four homes in Mission area were damaged as a result.

Dunes West

A complete fire guard has been established around the perimeter of the Dunes West wildfire as of Sunday.

Fire crews strengthened the fire guard by cleaning debris within the guard by hand tools and fire hoses.

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Hot spots inside the perimeter have shown a reduction through thermal mapping, and the technology is continuing to be used Monday to inform crews on which areas to focus on.

Sprinkler protection lines are still in place for structures east of the fire.

The overnight wind shift has brought in smoke to the City of Grande Prairie, and crews are prepared for extreme fire behaviour Monday, as wind gusts are expected to reach 40 km/h by the evening.

The following evacuation orders have been adjusted to evacuation alerts:

• TWP 710, East of Spring Creek to RR 65.
• RR 65 South of TWP 710 to Park Meadows, Park Meadows and Deer Run Estates, and within Townships 32 70 6W6 and 33 70 6W6
• Township Road 710 South to the Wapiti River between Highway 40 and Range Road 63.

1820 residents have registered with the Reception Centre located at Bonnett’s Energy Centre from the Dunes West and Bald Mountain wildfires.

Bald Mountain

Located 21 km west of Highway 40 and 50 km south of Grande Prairie, the Bald Mountain Wildfire evacuated a large area in the MD of Greenview, south of Grovedale over the weekend.

The fire is classified out of control and was last estimated to be 11,750 hectares.

On Sunday, fire crews worked with air support on suppressing the blaze, but have been a challenge due to the fire’s behaviour.

Heavy equipment and crews were mobilized and are prepared to work on areas of highest priorities closest to communities on Monday.

Sturgeon Lake Complex

Fire watchers say the Sturgeon Lake wildfire complex says both fires have grown, but have not been mapped due to the extreme fire behaviour over the weekend.

The estimations are still at 3,765 hectares for the one surrounding the lake and on both sides of Highway 49, and the one to the north west is still 1,189 hectares in size. Both are still out of control.

On Sunday, there were 49 firefighting personnel and 74 management and support staff on site.

Fifty additional firefighters from the United States arrived Sunday afternoon and will be integrated into operations Monday morning.

Twenty five pieces of heavy equipment were allotted to the two fires as well.

Ground crews were unable to directly attack the fire as fire behaviour became extreme yesterday on the fire surround Sturgeon Lake and across Highway 49.

One hundred foot containment lines along the perimeter of the fire were being created on Sunday.

Heavy machinery was used to construct dozer guard around the areas of new expansion, whenever possible.

Helibucketing was used to action hot spots, but due to heavy smoke and low visibility, the use of airtankers was not possible.

Clear Hills County/ Peace River

A precautionary emergency alert to those living in the area south of Township Road 854 to Highway 64 from Range Road 84 east to Range Road 74 in Clear Hills County was issued Saturday evening.

The alert is still in effect for residents in the impacted area must prepare to evacuate on one hour notice due to the out of control wildfire that is along the banks of the Peace River.

The wildfire was last estimated at 13,139 hectares by fire watchers, but is said to have grown 2,500 hectares on Saturday.

This wildfire is impacting Highway 64 and is closed in both directions from Range Road 74 to Range Road 91.

Little Smoky

The wildfire located 27 km southwest of Little Smoky is classified as out of control at an estimate 5,500 hectares.

The fire was showing very aggressive behaviour over the weekend.

The wildfire is an active crown fire, which is burning spruce and pine trees, which is a good fuel source for more fire.

Suppression efforts by Alberta Wildfire were pulled out of the area by noon on Sunday due to safety concerns.