A decent amount of rain has fallen on the wildfires in the past 48 hours. This will buy firefighters a few days of quiet fire behaviour but it is not significant enough to change the very dry conditions in our forest.
Firefighters continue to work as quickly as possible to build containment lines and extinguish hotspots in key areas near communities.
For information regarding evacuations, visit your local authorities webpage and social media sites for any updates on the situation.
For road closure information, visit Alberta511 or download the app.
Previous Edson Forest Area Updates - Click here
AB Wildfire firetack firefighters are working hard on the Deep Creek Complex searching for and extinguishing hotspots in deep ash pits and burnt peat areas. (June 15, 2023).
BE PREPARED & PAY ATTENTION
MESSAGE FROM YOUR COMMUNITIES
For information on evacuation alerts and orders, please visit Alberta Emergency Alert or visit your communities websites and and their social media pages for updates. For evacuation information for Yellowhead County and Town of Edson, contact the info line: 1-833-334-4630.
NEW WILDFIRE STARTS
Visit our wildfire dashboard to view active wildfires and their stats.
EDSON FOERST AREA | PEMBINA WILDFIRE COMPLEX | EWF031, EWF039
EWF031 was detected on May 4 and is located 18 km west of Lodgepole, 5 km northwest of Brazeau Dam and 1.5 km south of Edson. The fire is classified as out of control and is estimated to be 204,284 ha in size.
There are 224 firefighters and 65 support staff being shared between the Pembina Complex of fires. There are 92 pieces of heavy equipment, and 18 helicopters assigned to the complex. In addition, 160 structure protection personnel from the Town of Edson and Yellowhead County have integrated with the complex as a structure protection branch to allow for seamless coordination between Alberta Wildfire and the County.
The international contingent of personnel dedicated to the Pembina Complex includes professionals from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, United States, Alberta, B.C., and the Yukon. Over the coming days, additional support and resources are expected to arrive in support of these ongoing incidents.
Primary objectives at the Pembina Complex remain first responder and public safety. The onsite incident management team continues to work with impacted communities and partners to coordinate response in areas where the wildfire is adjacent to values.
Fire Behaviour
Since 1600 on June 13, widespread rain was received on all areas of the fire. Throughout the day yesterday, approximately 45-50 mm of precipitation occurred which exceeded precipitation expectations. With forecasted rain and mild conditions, there will be continued subdued fire behaviour. Winds will be occurring from the northwest approximately 15-20 km/hr and gusting up to 35 km/hr. A low will develop over southern Alberta on Saturday, giving steadier rain and a risk of thundershowers.
Resources
Today, the influx of precipitation received over the last couple of days may impact road access to the fireline. Access and egress routes will be assessed to ensure conditions are safe before crews utilize these routes. Aerial resources will be utilized today to perform reconnaissance flights to assess future contingency guard locations and to utilize bucketing operations on priority areas of the fire.
Night shifts are no longer required as relative humidity has been increasing during the afternoon and into the evening, meaning minimal fire behavior has been observed through the night. Though the swing shifts have been successful to allow for longer operational coverage on the fireline, this shift is no longer required to meet daily objectives. Aerial resources are expected to be grounded today due to weather conditions in the area and will only be active if weather is safe to do so. Additional resources will continue to arrive over the coming days.
Note that wildfire perimeter maps are 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.
Fickle Lake Finger – This area of the fire is approximately 2.5 km east of Fickle Lake and approximately 5 km south of Marlboro.
Conditions have not been receptive for planned ignitions and will not be receptive today due to heavy precipitation throughout the fire. Future planned ignitions will be evaluated over the coming days when favourable conditions are present and when needed to meet operational objectives.
Personnel are continuing to work closely with structure protection staff from the Yellow Head County to assess and protect values within the Fickle Lake and Marlboro area. Due to the downturn in weather, staff can test apparatus that is currently installed to verify that they are operationally ready.
Crews have completed protection of power poles to ensure critical infrastructure is maintained.
On June 13, a few slop overs occurred over the Sundance Road. Personnel will remain in this area today to continue patrol and mop up in this flank today to extinguish any remaining hotspots in the area.
Willmore Park Finger – This area of the fire is approximately 1.5 km south of Edson.
Machine guard has been established ahead of the most northern edge of this finger to limit any further growth in this area under current conditions. Crews have extinguished to 100 feet into the fire perimeter around the fire that crossed over the McLeod River. Crews will continue to work in this area alongside structure protection personnel from the Yellow Head County and Town of Edson today to ensure 100% extinguishment in this area.
Carrot Creek Area – This area of the fire is approximately 6 km south of Highway 16 and approximately 10 km southwest of Carrot Creek.
A heavy equipment group has completed guard west of Penn West Road to establish a control line in anticipation for planned ignition operations along the east flank, north of Kwaz Road. Planned ignition operations in this area will be reevaluated over the coming days when favourable conditions are present.
East side – This area of the fire is approximately 18 km west of Cynthia.
On June 13, increased fire behaviour was observed along the east side of the fire, west of Highway 753. This area of the fire displayed an organized flame front with elevated rates of spread and intermittent crowning up into the tree canopies. As the thunderstorm passed over this area of the fire, erratic northwest winds continue to cause an increase in fire activity. Conditions on-site have resulted in approximately 350-hectares of new fire growth to the east, approximately 10 km south of Eta Lake. Aerial resources including fixed-wing airtankers and bucketing helicopters responded as weather conditions allow. The fire edge remains approximately 18 km to the west of Cynthia.
EWF039 was detected on May 16 and is located near Carrot Creek. It is currently being held and estimated to be 165 ha. The fire is fully wrapped in containment line. Firefighters continue to monitor this wildfire.
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Ground wildfire firefighters are working with helicopters with water buckets to search for and extinguish hotspots on EWF031 (June 14, 2023).
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE FOERST AREA | PEMBINA WILDFIRE COMPLEX | RWF034, RWF040
RWF034 is located near the O'Chiese Reserve and classified as out of control. The fire is currently estimated at 87,108 ha in size.
Personnel on this fire were able to continue working on hot spots within the fires perimeter and will continue to monitor activity in these locations today.
Yesterday, a flare up occurred along the northwest tip. This area of the fire is burning in highly flammable spruce. Once the temperature drops in the coming days and fire behaviour decreases, crews will work ahead of this area of the fire to establish control lines.
Small hot spots continue to be present well within the fire perimeter and do not pose a threat to nearby communities. The perimeter on the west side of the Brazeau Reservoir has remained quiet.
RWF040 is being actively monitored by firefighters and support staff assigned to the complex who can respond if necessary. The fire is currently estimated to be 5,089 ha in size and remains classified as out of control. Infrared scans continue to be completed to help identify residual heat and help crews identify areas to target to ensure full extinguishment to 100 ft into the fire beyond the control lines. Crews were working on extinguishing minor hot spots within the fires perimeter and will continue to monitor activity in these locations today.
By: Sarah Hall, Pembina Complex. Wildfire Information Officer, BC Wildfire Service. For information related to the Pembina Wildfire Complex and the Deep Creek Wildfire Complex please contact: 780-728-5843.
EDSON FOREST AREA | DEEP CREEK COMPLEX | WCU001, WCU002, EWF035
WCU001 was detected on April 29, remains classified as out of control and is estimated to be 6,284 ha in size. 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. It is estimated to be 2,478 ha in size and remains classified as out of control. EWF035 was detected on May 5 and is located approximately 8 km north of the Niton Junction. It remains classified as out of control and is 19,672 ha in size.
There are 99 firefighters assigned to the Deep Creek Complex, two helicopters, 40 pieces of heavy equipment, and 20 overhead staff that are part of the incident management team and crew supervision. Additional helicopters and heavy equipment groups are available from the Pembina Complex should they be required on any of the fires within the Deep Creek Complex.
WCU001 fire perimetre remains secure and quiet. 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 it spread just north of Wildwood and now rests at Chip Lake.
WCU002 fire perimetre remains secure and quiet. Work continues to be done north of Wildwood west of highway 22. Firefighters wrapped up the work they were doing alongside the high-volume pump at the cattle field in this area. Crews are continuing to patrol southward to ensure the fire’s edge is fully secured.
AB Wildfire firefighters from the firetack crew use a lot of pumps, hose and water to extinguish hotspots in deep pits and burning peat areas. It's hard work and will take weeks or even months to complete (June 15, 2023).
EWF035: The northern portion of the fire is located 2 km east of Shining Bank Lake, reaching north and east across Township Road 560 and as far south as approximately 2 km north of the Niton Junction railway. The wildfire is south of Township Road 570, has burnt down to the south and continues to a site two kilometers north of the railroad track in Niton Junction. The fire moved across the Range Road 123 and burnt up to the Lobstick River. Flare ups will continue to occur within the perimeter of the fire perimeter and will be monitored and actioned accordingly by firefighters.
Woodlands County Fire Department continues to install structural protection on properties within the alert area as a precautionary measure.
Previous Edson Forest Area Updates - Click here.
By Caroline Charbonneau, Deep Creek Complex. Wildfire Information Officer, AB Wildfire - Edson Forest Area. For information related to the Deep Creek Complex please contact: 780-740-1341.
EDSON FOREST AREA | WILD HAY WILDFIRE COMPLEX | EWF037, EWF040
The Wild Hay Complex is comprised of two wildfires, EWF037 and EWF040. They are both located south of the Little Smoky River, north of the Wild Hay River and east of Hwy 40 north. The complex is 63 km north of Hinton. EWF040 is producing a lot of smoke that can be seen from far away, including from Hinton.
EWF040 remains out of control and was estimated to be 12,073 ha. It escaped its wildfire boundary on June 7 and is burning mostly to north-northwest from its original area and has crossed the the Berland River and is now burning in both our forest area and the Whitecourt Forest Area. Today, firefighters anticipate that the cold front will shift the winds sometime this afternoon and push the fire towards the south.
EWF037 continues to be classified as being held at 578 ha.
GENERAL INFORMATION ON WILDFIRES IN OUR AREA
AREA CHALLENGES | This has been an unprecedented wildfire season; one that has resulted in many challenges for wildfire staff across the province. In response Alberta has been working with our partners to meet the demands for personnel and equipment needed to fight the numerous wildfires we have seen this spring. In the Edson Forest Area we currently have crews and support staff from all over Canada and the world, including U.S.A., Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, B.C., P.E.I., Newfoundland and Ontario.
WORK OR RECREATE NEAR WILDFIRE AREAS | 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. Burnt trees are a serious hazard, and trees that may look healthy that have green needles or leaves could have burnt out roots under the ground and fall unexpectedly. Keep in mind that trees and powerlines could also fall on the road and block your vehicle. Do not approach powerlines as they could be energized.
SMOKE | Lingering smoke can still be visible in some areas and in affected communities. Smoke inversions can trap air near the ground causing dangerous driving conditions and impacting nearby communities. If you have smoke related health concerns, please contact Alberta 811 or visit Alberta Health Services . Visit firesmoke.ca for current and forecasted smoke.
REPORTING WILDFIRES | We always appreciate people calling in to report wildfires but the large volume of calls we are receiving could be diverting our resources away from other essential tasks. As always, 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. If you or your property are in immediate danger, call 911.
AIRCRAFT NEAR WATER | Depending on the location of a wildfire, firefighting aircraft may need to use water from nearby lakes as a source of water to help fight wildfires. Often, these aircraft arrive without advanced warning. If you are in the water and see an aircraft coming in to collect water, please move within 30 m from the shore so these aircraft can safely resume firefighting efforts. Aircraft are large and require space to collect water, without interference from people and boats. Help us by staying out of the way when aircraft are around. Click here to learn more.
DRONES | 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
WILDFIRE PREPARDNESS | Learn how you can prepare yourself for a wildfire by clicking here.
WILDFIRE INVESTIGATIONS | Wildfires in Alberta are either human-caused or caused by lightning. Every wildfire in Alberta is investigated and the wildfires mentioned remain under investigation.
WILDFIRE CLASSIFICATIONS | To learn more about wildfire classifications, click here.
WILDFIRE MAPS AND BOUNDARIES | Note that wildfire perimeter maps are 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. Visit our Wildfire Dashboard to view active wildfires and their stats on the wildfire dashboard. Click on "view interactive map". You can choose different basemaps by selecting the four squares icon, or layers by clicking on the three sheets of paper on the top right corner.
**Bold indicates new or important information.
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A reminder to the public that deep ash pits are dangerous, you could call in and burn yourself. Unstable trees and other unseen hazards are present in burnt areas (June 14, 2023).
We encourage the public and industry to download the AB Fire Bans app or visit the website to learn more about prohibited and allowed actives under this restriction. If you are looking for information regarding crown land, click on the area you plan to visit and not the nearest town. Be advised that Alberta Parks has it's own set of fire ban levels, please visit their website for more information.
The fire restriction will remain in effect until conditions improve. To view the Alberta Wildfire Fire Ban video, click here.
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.
- For road closure information, please visit 511.alberta.ca
- For information regarding smoke in the area, you can visit firesmoke.ca
- NASA FIRMS Fire Information website is a great resource to give an idea of the location of wildfires in the area, but note that the data is based on interpolation and often can make the wildfire look larger then it actually is.
- To view the provincial wildfire danger map, click here.
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:
