We urge residents and members of the public to use extra caution near burnt areas. There are many hazards that may not be visible, like deep burning ash pits and falling trees.
A drone in the sky means we can't fly. Keep our pilots and firefighters safe, a drone can cause serious injury and even death.
Previous Edson Forest Area Updates - Click here
Fire hose is being pulled from completed containment areas of the wildfires, and re-deployed as firefighters move along the fire perimeter. (May 21, 2023)
GENERAL INFORMATION ON WILDFIRES IN OUR AREA
**Bold indicates new or important information.
The area continues to have limited resources due to these exceptional times. We're sharing valuable resources with many other wildfires in the province but continue to work on and monitor the following wildfires in our area: WCU001, WCU002, EWF035, EWF031, EWF039, EWF037, EWF040 and new starts that are detected.
Firefighters, aircraft, and heavy equipment have been working in conjunction with county and municipal firefighting services as aggressively as possible to make progress on these wildfires while the conditions have been favorable. Despite all of this hard work, there are still hundreds of kilometers of uncontained wildfire perimeter and fire behaviour forecasts indicate that there may be growth on some of the wildfires throughout the Edson Forest Area.
Smoke will be heavy again today in the Edson Forest Area. Lingering smoke will be visible in multiple areas and in affected communities following the cold front passage. Smoke inversions can also trap air near the ground causing dangerous driving conditions and impacting nearby communities. Please use EXTRA CAUTION WHEN DRIVING IN SMOKY CONDITIONS!
While we always appreciate people calling in to report wildfires, the large volume of calls we are currently receiving is diverting our resources away from other essential tasks. As always, please still call 310-FIRE if you see smoke or flame that looks new and potentially unreported, but assume that large columns of smoke and burned over areas have already been detected and reported. Thank you!
All wildfires in Alberta are investigated and these wildfires remain under investigation. To learn more about wildfire classifications, click here.
ACTIVE WILDFIRES
PEMBINA WILDFIRE COMPLEX - EWF031/039, RWF034/040
EWF031 was detected on May 4 and is located 25 km west of Lodgepole, 20 km northwest of Brazeau Dam and 14 km southeast of Edson. The fire is classified as out of control and is estimated to be 113,244 hectares (ha) in size. The increased size is attributed to growth that has been observed over the last few days and due to more accurate mapping. Containment line is established on the northwest tip of the fire.
There are 79 firefighters and support staff being shared between this fire and EWF039. There are 20 pieces of heavy equipment and 9 helicopters assigned to the complex. An airtanker group is available to respond if necessary. A new Incident Management Team from the United States arrived yesterday and will be working on the Pembina Complex starting Monday.
Today, visibility issues from smoke in the area continued. Aerial ignition operations were not conducted but will be reassessed when visibility in the area improves. Crews continued working on hotspots south of Svedberg Road and an additional crew will work along the excursion that occurred 4 km south of Svedberg Road.
Both hotspots are estimated to be 1 ha in size and will require multiple days of sustained action by crews and heavy equipment.
The containment line south from Dora’s Corner was completed yesterday, as well as containment line on the north side, working towards 6 Mile Road. Both containment lines will need air support operations when visibility improves, and it is safe for aircraft to operate to perform bucketing.
Today, a downturn in weather occurred. There is a chance of isolated or scattered rain and thunder cells in the vicinity of the fire today and tomorrow. North and northwest 10-15 km/h winds will be present today, shifting to moderate to strong northeast and northwest winds tomorrow. This wind trend will continue into Monday and Tuesday as a surface low pressure deepens over central Alberta.
RWF034 is located near the O'Chiese Reserve and is classified as out of control. The fire is currently estimated at 82,869 ha in size. The increased size is attributed to growth that has been observed over the last few days and due to more accurate mapping. There are 55 firefighters and support staff working on this fire. There are 3 helicopters assigned to the fire and four additional helicopters assigned to the complex. In addition, there are 22 pieces of heavy equipment.
Today, visibility issues from smoke in the area will continued and impacted aerial and ground operations. Ground crews will be assessing locations on the southside of the fire for future operations. Crews continue to mop up in the northern part of the southwest side of the fire.
RWF040 is located 6 km northeast of the Forestry Trunk Road and Brown Creek Provincial Recreational Area and is classified as out of control. The fire is being monitored by firefighters and support staff assigned to the complex and they are able to respond if necessary. The fire is currently estimated to be 4,544 ha in size. Growth has occurred mostly to the west. The Blackstone Lookout Tower in the area is currently not at risk.
If you have any questions or concerns about the PEMBINA COMPLEX please call the Acting Area Wildfire Information Officer Mélissa Lamadeleine 780-728-5618.
DEEP CREEK WILDFIRE COMPLEX – EWF035, WCU001 & WCU002
WCU001 was detected on April 29 and is classified as out of control. The wildfire remains at 7,281 ha in size, no new growth was recorded outside the fire perimeter. The wildfire zone is located southeast of Entwistle and west over the Pembina River where it spread north and travelled over Highway 16. The wildfire is parallel with Highway 16 and moved further west where the wildfire spread just north of Wildwood and now rests at Chip Lake.
WCU002 was detected on the evening of April 29 and is a mutual aid wildfire located on both sides of Highway 22, north of Highway 16. The wildfire is currently burning out of control. The wildfire is estimated to be 2,400 ha in size.
There was no new growth outside on either of these wildfires and very little fire activity was observed. Patches of unburned fuel within the boundaries flared up again and were actioned with helicopter bucketing operations.
Patches of unburned vegetation may continue to burn inside the perimeter. Firefighters will often use an indirect attack approach to these challenging wildfires, letting them burn up to a natural break such as a road or a river. This ensures that the remaining vegetation within doesn’t continue to burn later in the season. Residents may see smouldering and flare ups at times within the perimeter. This is a normal occurrence until firefighters contain the fire perimeter to ensure it doesn’t grow, then work their way from the outside edge inwards. Firefighters will need to search for these hotspots, sometimes digging into the ground with their hands and feeling for heat. They use hand tools to dig the spots out and water to extinguish them. Simply putting water on a fire does not extinguish it. This process can take a long time and residents can expect that the fire will remain "out of control" until firefighters are confident that the fire is contained. At that time, the status will be changed to "being held" while they work towards extinguishment.
Helicopters were unable to fly again today due to smoky conditions and poor visibility. They are still available to action these flare-ups as required throughout the day using bucketing operations.
Deep ash pits and burning peat are dangerous. We ask residents to be extra cautious when near burnt areas.
Smoke will continue be very visible to residents in the area. It is being produced from the interior of the fire. The smoke can be a benefit, dampening the wildfire behaviour but can also cause health concerns. If you're experiencing smoke related health concerns, you can contact 811.
EWF035 was detected on May 5 and is located 3 km east of Shining Bank. This wildfire is classified as out of control and estimated to be 18,608 ha in size. The fire doubled in size two days but did not increase to the northeast or northwest. The wildfire is now south of Township Road 570, burnt down to the south, two kilometers north of the railroad track in Niton Junction. The fire moved across the Rge Rd 123 and burnt up to the Lobstick River.
Firefighters did not observe very much fire activity today, thanks to the higher relative humidity, cooler temperatures and a little precipitation. The precipitation received wasn’t significant enough to change the dry conditions but did allow firefighters to continue working on containing the wildfire. The fire had a few flare ups in the interior, but mostly smouldered on the southern edge where the newest activity was happening.
We expect similar conditions tomorrow, with cool temperatures and more rain.
Today firefighters were busy re-establishing new containment lines and building onto existing ones on the southern edge, using heavy equipment and natural breaks like roads and open cut blocks. Once the wildfire is contained, firefighters will begin moving towards the interior of the fire, looking for and extinguishing hotspots.
Helicopters were available today to assist on the fire but none of our aircraft were able to fly again today due to smoky conditions and poor visibility.
Wildfire firefighters continue to work with heavy equipment containing the fire on the western and northwestern side of the fire. A nearly completed containment line made up of dozer guard, natural breaks and hand ignition burning is in place on the east side of East Bank Road.
Firefighters will continue to patrol the boundaries and extinguish hotspots on the edge. Residents will notice hotspots within the interior and this is very common for larger wildfires. They must be confident that the fire is contained and once that’s established, they’ll start to work from the edges out and work their way in, searching for hotspots by looking and smelling for smoke, and feeling with their bare hands for heat. Once found, they must dig it up with hand tools and put them out with water. This process can take a very long time, simply putting water on a wildfire does not extinguish it as fires can burn deep into the ground and re-surface later when the conditions are favorable to burn.
The northeast of the fire was patrolled again today, and no heat was found along the edges of the wildfire. Firefighters were successful in establishing a containment line that runs from the 570 down to the 560 on the east side of the wildfire earlier this week. Their hand ignition burn operations were also successful, removing as much fuel as possible in the area.
We are asking the public to use extra caution around wildfire operations and not walk into the burnt areas. There are many hazards that are difficult to see, like deep burning ash pits, unstable trees that can fall because their roots have been burnt away, as well as other unknown dangers. Firefighters are highly trained individuals who wear special gear when working near wildfire. Fallen trees on various roads have been reported.
If you see aircraft in the area, we ask that you move away from the area to allow them space to work. You may be unintentionally impeding their operations, please give our firefighters the room and time they need to complete their tasks.
By: Caroline Charbonneau.
If you have any questions or concerns about the DEEP CREEK COMPLEX please call the Wildfire Information Officer - Caroline Charbonneau at 780-740-1341.
WILD HAY WILDFIRE COMPLEX - EWF037 and EWF040
There are multiple wildfires located south of the Little Smoky River, north of the Wild Hay River and east of Hwy 40 north. These also include the areas near the Willow Haul Road and the Jack Wright Road north of Hinton. These wildfires were formerly reported as five separate fires, but due to more accurate GPS measuring, have been determined to be two larger fires.
EWF037 is being held at 578 ha and EWF040 is out of control at 684 ha.
Crews have successfully completed the containment line around EWF040 and EWF037.
There was no perimeter growth on the complex again today. The containment lines around the fires have withheld. Smoke and flame may still be observed within the interior of both EWF-037 and EWF-040.
Today crews continued to monitor the wildfires and were bucketing on hotpsots along the containment lines. Great progress has been made in the past days on this wildfire complex.
If you have any questions or concerns about the PEMBINA COMPLEX please call the Acting Area Wildfire Information Officer Mélissa Lamadeleine 780-728-5618.
PUBLIC WILDFIRE MAPS
Deep Creek Wildfire Complex (EWF-035, WCU002 and WCU001) May 20, 2023 - public map - Click here.
Pembina Wildfire Complex (EWF031, EWF039, RWF034, RWF040) May 21 , 2023 - public map - Click here. *this map does not show other wildfire nearby.
EWF031 Wildfire May 21, 2023 - public map - Click here. * this map does not show other wildfire nearby.
Note: The wildfire perimeter map is an estimate based on measurements such as GPS, aerial scanning and satellite imagery. This estimated perimeter can change as more accurate measurements become available. Areas within the fire perimeter may not have been affected by wildfire.
WILDFIRE LINKS AND TOOLS
Visit our Wildfire Dashboard to view active wildfires and their stats on the wildfire dashboard.
There are multiple EVACUATION ORDERS & ALERTS in the Province. Please visit Alberta Emergency Alerts or your community webpage for more information.
For road closure information, please visit: 511.alberta.ca
The NASA FIRMS Fire Information website is a great resource to give an idea of the location of wildfires in the area, but it should be noted that this data is based on interpolation and often can make a wildfire appear larger than it actually is.
Wildfire smoke is a tool used for the location of smoke firesmoke.ca
PROVINCIAL STATE OF EMERGENCY
Hot, dry conditions continue in most areas of the province resulting in numerous wildfires. A provincial state of emergency has been declared. Albertans who require assistance can call 310-4455 for wildfire related information - Click here.
DO NOT FLY DRONES NEAR WILDFIRES!
The use of recreational drones over wildfires in Alberta is dangerous, illegal and could result in a fine of up to $15,000* for putting aircraft and people at risk. Please give Alberta firefighters the space they need to do their jobs safely. *Transport Canada
VOLUNTEER INFORMATION
Volunteers, equipment owners/operators or firefighters looking to assist with these wildfires or any of the wildfires within the province, please contact EmergencySupportOffers@gov.ab.ca. Please do not contact Edson Forest Area logistics directly, as they are extremely busy supporting the wildfire situation in the area. Thank you.
COMMUNITY EMERGENCY INFORMATION | EVACUATIONS
A MESSAGE FROM THE MUNICIPALITIES
If you are evacuating, gather important documents, medication, and enough food and water to be away from home for at least 3 days. Take pets with you.
For updates from Yellowhead County and Town of Edson, please visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/yellowheadcounty or www.yhcounty.ca for updates. Evacuees can call 1-833-334-4630 for more information.
For updates from Parkland County, please visit their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ParklandCountyAB. Residents in the affected areas can contact the Emergency Information Line at 1-780-968-8888.
For residents with health concerns related to smoke you can find the air quality map here: https://www.alberta.ca/about-the-air-quality-health-index.aspx. If you have smoke related health concerns, please contact AB 811 and click here for more information.
WILDFIRE PREVENTION TIPS
Albertans are always asked to use caution when working or recreating in the outdoors:
- Before you burn it, get your fire permit. Fire permits in Alberta.
- Clear debris from hot spots on your off-highway vehicle.
- Ensure your campfire is out - soak it, stir it, soak it again.
- Before you head out this weekend, check out the albertafirebans.ca website or download the app to stay informed.
ALBERTA WILDFIRE INFORMATION
- Subscribe to the Edson Forest Area wildfire update to receive an email when new information is posted.
- Download the Alberta Wildfire App for Apple and Android device.
- Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
For more information, please contact:
