Canadian Armed Forces soldiers have come to Grande Prairie to help fight fires. Photo from the Grande Prairie Forest Area Wildfire Information office.

By Curtis Galbraith/The Canadian Press

Wildfires

Several wildfires still burning out of control, soldiers arrive to help

May 11, 2023 | 4:51 PM

Wildfire watchers in the Grande Prairie Forest Area say the two fires in the Sturgeon Lake Complex have burned a combined 4,954 hectares. Both are still listed as out of control.

Indigenous Services Canada says 45 buildings, including homes and an elders centre, have burned down. The fire also damaged the power grid, and a lack of power meant the water treatment plant also shut down.

The fire in the Bald Mountain area is also still out of control and is estimated at 8,362 hectares in size. Fire watchers say there has not been a lot of growth since Wednesday.

In the Peace River Forest Area, the fire five kilometres east of Cleardale has now burned 10,508 hectares. Crews are working to build fire breaks on the south and west sides to be used in combination with wetlands and farmland to slow the fire. Fire activity has been reduced. The fire is generating a lot of smoke in the Peace River valley.

Another fire northeast of Three Creeks has burned just over 6200 hectares. Another fire that started in the Slave Lake Forest Area has burned 38,706 hectares. Cool weather and precipitation have helped firefighters make a lot of progress in building fireguards.

Meaningful Mementos

Remembering Someone You've Lost at Christmas

Dec 03, 2024

Seasonal Sorrow

How Do You Get Through The Holidays When You're Grieving?

Nov 01, 2024

Upcoming Events at Oliver's

Grief & Loss and Estate Planning Seminars

Oct 02, 2024

All three of these fires are listed as out of control.

In the Whitecourt Forest Area, the fire 16 kilometres northeast of Fox Creek is still out of control and is estimated at over 21,500 hectares in size. Recent precipitation has slowed the spread of this blaze,

Federal Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair says Canadian Armed Forces personnel are being deployed to help with the wildfire situation in Alberta.

The troops are to go to the Grande Prairie, Fox Creek and Drayton Valley areas to provide firefighting support to aid in mop-up operations and basic firefighting duties, as well as the evacuation of isolated communities.

The Paskwa Fire in Fox Lake is also still out of control at over 24,600 hectares. More than 100 structures in the Little Red River Cree Nation have burned.

The fire in the Rainbow Lake area is also still out of control at over 19,000 hectares.

In the Slave Lake Forest Area, the three Grizzly complex fires have burned just under 100,000 hectares combined.

The largest of these fires is burning in and near the East Prairie Metis Settlement. Reports say 14 homes have been destroyed in that community.

Another two-fire complex has burned a total area of just under 18,500 hectares. One of those fires is just over two kilometres from the east border of the Whitefish Lake First Nation. It did not grow very much Wednesday, but there was some growth for the other one. Firefighters and helicopters were able to slow the spread.