Smoke is expected to be heavy again tomorrow due to the northern winds bringing smoke down from the wildfires in the High Level area and Northwest Territories. 

Anyone with health concerns regarding the smoke should check the Alberta Health Services website or call 811 for 24/7 health advice from Alberta Health Link. For a smoke forecast map, please visit Wildfire Smoke Forecasts for Western Canada.

Wildfire Hazard

The wildfire hazard in the area is now HIGH for tomorrow (Saturday), provided the forecasted rains and lower temperatures occur as predicted.  Temperatures are expected to be lower tomorrow at around 16 degrees Celsius.  Winds are going to be strong and gusty from the north at 25 km/hr, gusting to 50 km/hr. A light amount of rain has been forecasted for most of the area and there is a small chance that some lightning will come with it.  If the rain doesn't come as forecasted, there will be far less relief in the fire hazard levels than anticipated.    

Please help our firefighters action wildfires quickly by contacting us immediately at 310-FIRE to report wildfires.

Fire Weather Advisory

Effective 12:00pm today, the fire weather advisory for northern and central Alberta has ended.

Fire Advisory Information

The Peace River Wildfire Management Area has declared a Fire Advisory effective at noon on June 26, 2015.

Campfires
Safe campfires are permitted in campgrounds and back country or random camping areas. 

Fire Permits
Fire permits are not suspended at this time, but may be in the future if the wildfire hazard continues to climb. Fire permits will be issued on a site by site basis and may be refused until conditions are more favorable. 

Weather Advisory
Lightning storms along with strong, gusting winds are expected for the weekend. Strong winds can cause extreme fire behaviour and allow fires to grow rapidly, while lightning can ignite multiple wildfires. Residents and visitors to the Peace River Wildfire Management Area are urged to be extra cautious with any burning at this time and call 310-FIRE to report wildfires.

Contact 1-866-FYI-FIRE with questions.

Please make a habit of visiting www.albertafirebans.ca to ensure that there is no fire ban or restriction in your area before burning.

Local Wildfires

There have been 131 wildfires in the Peace River Wildfire Management Area this fire season, all but 6 of which have been extinguished.  

Active wildfires in the area current as of 10 pm on July 3 (changes have been bolded): 

• PWF 052  is under control at 1202.80 hectares 
• PWF 054 is under control at 36.60 hectares
• PWF 116 is under control at 5.40 hectares northeast of the Notikewin Provincial Park
• PWF 130 is under control at 1.0 hectare in size in the Hawk Hills area 

NOTIKEWIN COMPLEX

Due to the smoke drifting into the area, concerns have been raised that these fires are burning into communities (Manning, Dixonville, Deadwood).  Please note that these fires are currently over 50 kms to the west of these communities.

• PWF 129 is out of control at 530 hectares in the Notikewin area (approximately 15 kms northwest of Sulphur lake). The majority (85%) of the fire has now been encircled by dozer guard.  The dozer groups will continue to work towards completely surrounding it tomorrow.  
• PWF 131 was discovered yesterday afternoon and has grown to 2,900 hectares in size.  This fire is located just south of PWF 129 and approximately 10 kms west of Sulphur Lake and 15 kms northwest of Stony Lake. Unfortunately, due to the volatile and unpredictable fire behavior, we were unable to put firefighters on this fire today but dozer groups worked on building dozer guard all day and air tankers dropped long term retardant on it this morning.
• The fire behavior on both of these fires was relatively quiet this morning but the fire behavior worsened substantially this afternoon on PWF 131 especially and it grew to the east and south.
• *In order to ensure the safety of the public and our firefighters, access onto the Notikewin Tower Road, the DMI P2 200 and the Silver Creek Road will be limited to necessary personnel only until further notice.  Please do NOT go into the area for any reason without first calling 780-618-6215.*

• NOTIKEWIN COMPLEX MAP - Please note that this map is from July 2 at 9 pm and we are working to build an updated map to share as soon as possible.  The fire has spread to the south and east of the where it is displayed on the map.

BC FIRE

• BPZ002 - The wildfire located just on the BC side of the Alberta/British Columbia border in the Fontas area is now over 8,317.90 hectares in size and has now crossed into Alberta.  Approximately 350 hectares of this fire are now burning within Alberta.
•  We are hoping to have a map showing the perimeter of this fire available to share in the near future.      

Please click the link for an explanation of wildfire statuses.

Provincial Wildfires

There are 119 wildfires currently burning in the province, 54 of which remain out of control as of 10 pm on July 3.  

The 2015 fire season has been busier than average for the province with 1,270 fires and 268,139 hectares burned thus far.  This time last year, there had been 766 wildfires with a total of 2,004 hectares burned.

Please visit our wildfire status map on our website at www.wildfire.alberta.ca or download the Alberta Wildfire App for more information on what is happening throughout the province.

Fire Permits

BEFORE YOU BURN IT, GET YOUR PERMIT

Albertans in the forested areas need to get a fire permit for any burning, excluding campfires.

• Fire permits are free and you can get more information or request a fire permit by calling our Peace River office at 780-624-6190.
• Please call a week in advance of when you would like to burn in order to give our staff time to make arrangements to come out to your site and issue your permit.
• In order to further ease the process, please have your site ready according to the burning site guidelines. before staff arrive.
• All permits must be completely extinguished before they expire, so if you need an extention, please make sure to call in for one well before your permit expires.

Wildfire Prevention

Please click on the links below for more information on how YOU can prevent wildfires.

• get a fire permit before you burn
• ensure that your campfire is COMPLETELY extinguished before you leave your site
• check your ATV for dry debris that may be heating up on the hot parts of your machine.  

For More Information

• Visit us on Facebook  or Twitter or download our Alberta Wildfire App for android and apple products
• Up-to-date information fire restrictions and fire bans is available by calling 1-866-FYI-FIRE (1-866-394-3473).
• Current wildfire information
• Fire ban information
• Fire ban system