Tanis Blocka will be acting Information Officer for the area as Leah Lovequist has been called to Fort McMurray. Anyone requiring information can contact Tanis at Tanis.Blocka@gov.ab.ca or 780-516-1347.
The forecast for the remainder of the week will see the temperatures slowly increase. The lower than normal temperatures will stick around for Wednesday and Thursday with an increase in temperature coming Friday and Saturday. There is no precipitation in the forecast for this week so please continue to be cautious as a wildfire will ignite easily and spread very quickly. Call 310-FIRE (3473) immediately to report a wildfire.
Smoke in the Air 
- There is potential for smoke from the Fort McMurray fires to start moving into the area on Wednesday.
- If you have health concerns regarding smoke inhalation from a wildfire, check the Alberta Health Services website or call 811 for 24 hour health advice.
- The photo below is from the smoke forecast for Wednesday afternoon, you can check it at firesmoke.ca.
Otter Lakes Wildfire Update
The Otter Lakes wildfire is located approximately 36 kilometres northwest of Red Earth Creek. Communities are not being threatened. Firefighters, heavy equipment and helicopters continue to fight this wildfire lead by an incident management team.
The Otter Lakes wildfire is now considered to 'be held' which means that given the current weather conditions and resources, the wildfire is not anticipated to grow past its current boundaries.
Since April 1st there have been 50 wildfires in the Slave Lake Forest Area and the total area burned over 1996.58 hectares.
Click here to view the Wildfire Situation in Alberta.
A fire ban has been issued for the province of Alberta as of 6:00 pm on May 5th.
The fireban will be in place until further notice. Every precaution is being taken to ensure no new preventable fires are started in the coming days that will put additional strain on the province's firefighting resources.
For more information on the Fire Bans, visit AlbertaFirebans.ca or call 1-866-FYI-FIRE (394-3473).
Province restricts off-highway vehicle recreational use
The OHV restriction will be in place until further notice. It applies to recreational use on public lands, including designated OHV trails, only. It will not apply to agriculture, public safety or commercial/industrial users who operate OHVs for farming, enforcement or business purposes. The OHV restriction does not apply to the use of an OHV by Indigenous peoples when exercising a right recognized and affirmed under Part II of the Constitution Act, 1982 or a right under section 12 of the Natural Resources Transfer Agreement.
Wildfire management staff, along with enforcement personnel, including Conservation Officers and Fish and Wildlife Officers, will enforce the temporary OHV recreational restriction immediately. OHVs include all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), four-wheel vehicles, motorcycles and related two-wheel vehicles and amphibious machines.
- If Albertan's are witnessing restricted OHV activities they can call the Report a Poacher Line at 1-800-642-3800.
- For more information you can visit emergency.alberta.ca
Thank you for your patience and cooperation, by following the fire ban and OHV restriction, you help keep our firefighters free to fight wildfires.
Unless conditions change, you can expect your next wildfire update on May 11th.
Tanis Blocka -Wildfire Information Officer
Mobile: 780.516.1347
Tanis.Blocka@gov.ab.ca
Report Wildfires 310-FIRE (3473)
