The wildfire hazard for tomorrow is HIGH.
The forecast for tomorrow is for a high of 19 degrees with humidity of 35% and winds at NW15 km/hr. A cold front is expected to cross the area tonight and then another one on Wednesday night/Thursday morning, bringing cooler temperatures and gusty winds with probability of accompanying thundershowers. The precipitation we are receiving is not enough to bring relief to the heavy fuels on the ground or to influence the drought codes. Winds are the problem as they are drying out any precipitation that falls or humidity that lingers. Also compounding the problem is lightning that crosses the area without sufficient rain to offset it.
We had one new fire today. LWF 196 is Being Held at .3 hectares, and is within the boundaries of the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range. This fire was from lightning last week.
We have a total of 10 active fires in the area: 2 are being held, 3 are under control and 5 are out of control. Two fires were extinguished today. We have 19 crews, 13 helicopters, two dozer units and other heavy equipment positioned across the area to fight new fires. Resources dedicated to LWF 161, 175/192 are outlined below.
Here's a recap of other fires in the area:
LWF 195 is being held at 4.25 hectares. This fire is in the Kirby area. Resources are working on this fire.
LWF 192 remains out of control at 195 hectares. This fire is close to LWF 175, however they have not become one fire. The photo below shows LWF 192 in the foreground with smoke visible in the background from LWF 175. We expect the dozer guard to be complete by mid-day tomorrow. There are still some green "islands" within the fire perimeter that were burning today. There are 50 firefighters, 25 helicopters, and 28 heavy equipment operators working on this fire.
LWF 175 remains out of control at almost 14,000 hectares. This fire, which stretches into Saskatchewan, is located just to the east of LWF 192. Winds stirred up this fire this afternoon and smoke was visible for many miles. The fire took an excursion today about 1,000 hectares further into Saskatchewan, driven by the winds. There are no values at risk. Guard is about 45% complete.
LWF 191 remains out of control at 250 hectares (doubled in size on the weekend but no new growth today). This fire is 25 km west of Mariana Lakes. There were no crews working this fire today. The photo below shows a great example of a dozer guard. The snake-like path in the foreground is a path about three blades wide, cleared by dozers. This space acts as a firebreak, stopping the fire and preventing it from further spread. Dozers work in areas upwind, so they can see to safely clear a break.
LWF 189 remains out of control at 103 hectares. This fire is in the Bovine area. The fire grew substantially over the weekend but there was no growth today. We were able to get resources to this fire today. There is guard around about 40% of the fire. Cenovus is about 5 km to the north.
LWF 161 remains out of control at just under 12,000 hectares. The map below shows the perimeter of the fire in red (near the yellow pin). You can see the growth on the east side of the fire, from winds over the weekend. The fire took a significant excursion today of about 600 hectares, to the north east. Dozer guard, on the southwest portion of the fire, is about 15% complete. They are now working on the southeast portion of the guard. There are 67 firefighters, 11 helicopters and 15 heavy equipment operators working on this fire.
The fire is about 6 miles from Highway 63 and about 7 miles from the Old Conklin Highway. Winds from the northwest or the west, will turn the east flank of the fire into the head of the fire. We are on the lookout for this, as this will mean a very long and potentially intense head to deal with tomorrow. This also means smoke will be an issue for the Conklin area once again.
ASK 001 - Saskatchewan Fire near Garson Lake, is active again on the west side. The photo below shows the fire having picked up due to gusty winds today. You can see the dozer guard in the photo below. There is black on both sides of the guard, illustrating an example where the fire jumped the guard. Winds blew sparks from the fire ahead of the fire and over the dozer guard. This is called a spot fire. The black shows where the spot fire has been extinguished, and the new smoke shows how weather conditions can revive a fire! The winds tomorrow should drive the fire back onto itself. There are no variables at risk currently.
A Fire Advisory is in place for the Lac La Biche Wildfire Management Area. Due to high hazard conditions, we are no longer issuing fire permits and existing permits have been suspended. Safe campfires are currently allowed, but may be restricted in the coming days if conditions worsen. Keep campfires small and under control. Make sure they are completely extinguished before you leave them.
Sorry, but NO FIREWORKS.
Avoid or delay the use of quads and all terrain vehicles in the forest. If you must ride, stop frequently and clean grass buildup from your machine.
Parts of The Old Conklin Highway, or "The Miles" as it's called locally could be impacted by LWF 161. For your safety, stay a good distance south of Checkerboard Corner.
Thanks for doing your part to prevent wildfire.
For more information, please contact:
Leslie Lozinski
Forest Information Officer
780-623-9758