Fort McMurray Forest Area Wildfire Update

The wildfire danger level is extreme across the Fort McMurray Forest Area.

A fire ban is in effect for the entire Fort McMurray Forest Area.

Hangingstone Provincial Recreation Area and Richardson Wildland Park have been closed to the public effective immediately.

67% of wildfires are human-caused, everyone plays a role in preventing wildfires. Take the wildfire pledge to reduce wildfires and be entered to win a helicopter tour! Go to alberta.ca/wildfire-pledge.

Wildfire MCX002 - Cattail Complex

There are several wildfires that are all being managed together under MCX002. This includes MWF047, MWF056, MWF057 (now extinguished), MWF077 and MWF079. MWF056 is classified as being held and the rest are out of control. All of these wildfires were caused by lightning.

There are 246 personnel currently working on this complex, including 134 firefighters, 64 incident management team members, support staff, contractors and pilots. We have 19 helicopters and 29 pieces of heavy equipment working this complex.

MWF047- estimated to be 82,709 ha in size. See the most recent map available for MWF047.

Currently, MWF047 is approximately 6.8 km northeast of industrial facilities, about 53 km northeast of Fort McKay and 68 km northeast of Fort McMurray.

Today, we again saw extreme fire behaviour. However, because of the increase in temperatures and lower relative humidities than what we've seen for the past few days, extreme fire behaviour was seen sooner in the day, as early as 10:30 AM. This means we saw extreme fire behaviour for most of the burning period today. This is expected to continue for the next few days, based on the weather forecast.

The light westerly winds helped to push today's fire growth mainly towards the east, not towards any values. When winds are light, wildfires tend to try to burn where fuel is available. Light winds can be challenging for this reason, the direction of fire growth can be challenging to predict.

Last night, dozers worked overnight on creating a dozer guard towards containing a northwest portion of the wildfire. This fire growth has not made progress towards any industrial facilities at this time. This dozer guard should be completed within the next day or so.

Today, crews, helicopters, and heavy equipment have been focused on holding the west side of this wildfire perimeter. In the later afternoon when fire behaviour was at it's worst, crews and heavy equipment were pulled off the line for safety reasons.

Crews will continue to work along the south-southwest edge of MWF047, supported with helicopters bucketing.

MWF077- estimated to be 8,167 ha in size. See the most recent map available for MWF077.

Currently, MWF077 is approximately 9 km south of industrial facilities, about 36 km east of Fort McKay and 38 km northeast of Fort McMurray.

Today, was another challenging firefighting day on this complex. Fire behaviour was extreme and crews were pulled off the fireline for safety reasons.

Today, helicopters bucketed along the northern edge of this wildfire. Most of the fire growth we saw today was towards the east, same as MWF047. At this time of this update, the wildfire has not moved any closer to industrial facilities.

Today, we again had a retardant application truck put down lines of retardant. This is a vehicle that can spray retardant into the ditch or on the ground near power poles and is an effective way to add more retardant in key locations in a more precise way than with airtankers. This also helps to take some pressure off of the airtankers, then airtankers can can focus on putting down retardant where a truck truck can't access.

The forecast is predicting conditions conducive to extreme fire behaviour for the next few days. This means we can expect some significant fire growth. The forecast for the next few days predict that we will have very challenging firefighting days ahead of us.

Tomorrow, the forecast predicts a high of 33 degrees Celsius and a low relative humidity of 20 per cent. Winds are expected to come out of the southwest at 10 km/h, shifting to come out of the northwest around noon. Winds are expected to shift back to coming from the southwest in the evening. No chance of rain in the forecast.

We plan to have our nighttime capable helicopters bucket on this complex again tonight. Last night they worked well into the morning bucketing on this complex and were also able to monitor fire activity. Fire activity was still present but died down slightly overnight.

We have ignition plans prepared in the event we need to use them. This is only done during ideal conditions and under the watchful eye of experienced wildfire managers. These operations are supported by helicopter bucketing operations.

High level scans will continue to be completed for MWF047 and MWF077 and help to identify areas of fire growth and hotspots. These scans are crucial for prioritizing resources to the parts of the wildfire that require it most.

(The smoke column on MWF077 was shifted by a storm cloud that rolled through the area today, July 17, 2024)

Wildfire MCX003 - Algar Lake Complex

The Algar Lake Complex includes wildfires:

MWF069 – estimated at 15,000 hectares – classified as out of control
MWF086 – estimated at 500 hectares – classified as out of control

Most of Fort McMurray Forest Area continues to see temperatures soaring over 30 degrees, paired with low relative humidity values at or below 30%. As this weather trend is likely to persist through this week, the potential continues to build for extreme fire behaviour and further fire spread.

The estimated size for both of the above fires is likely to change as new perimeters are drafted in the coming days, reflecting the growth experienced in certain areas of the perimeters. Portions of the fire perimeters have spread, but with the current smoke conditions and low visibility, new perimeters have not yet been drafted. Keep an eye on the Alberta Wildfire Dashboard for updates to fire perimeters.

MWF069 started on July 10 as a series of smaller lightning-caused fires that all merged into this larger fire. It is located approximately:

11 km west of Highway 63
40 km southwest of Fort McMurray

Key areas where crews and heavy equipment have been working on the northeast corner have seen limited spread, which means that the easternmost portion of MWF069 has not progressed significantly toward highway 63 for the time being. Other uncontained areas of the fire perimeter were very active today and did progress east toward highway 63. At this time, the most active areas are still over 10 km from the highway.

MWF086 was confirmed on Tuesday afternoon after lightning swept through the area of the Algar Lake Complex. This wildfire is located approximately 8 km north of the MWF069 perimeter and is estimated at 500 hectares. At this time, there remains no immediate concerns created by this fire.

(Increased fire behaviour on MWF086 at 2:30 pm, July 17)

Discovering new holdover fires remains possible after a significant amount of lightning on the landscape on Tuesday afternoon. Crews and fire management personnel continue to monitor for new starts. If you see a smoke column or flames in a new area, you can report it to Alberta Wildfire by dialing 310-FIRE.

A high of 33 degrees Celsius is expected for Thursday, with relative humidity values falling to 20%. Crossover conditions are forecast. Southwesterly winds are scheduled to shift northwesterly near noon at 10 km/h. No precipitation is anticipated.

There are 159 personnel from Alberta, New Brunswick and Ontario assigned to the Algar Lake Complex. Among them are forest firefighters, heavy equipment operators, structure protection staff and a 15-person incident management team.

An ignition team has been assigned to MCX003 to assess opportunities for reducing forest fuels ahead of potential fire spread in strategic areas of the Algar Lake Complex. Planned and controlled ignition operations are only conducted under specific weather conditions and are always thoroughly supervised by wildfire management specialists. Their goal is to safely limit the progression of fire spread.

All fire crews were assigned to work on the northeast corner MWF069 today, more generally on the east side of the fire to limit fire spread eastward toward highway 63. Bucketing helicopters and belly tankers worked in coordination with fire crews to keep fire intensity down near today’s worksites, generally successfully. Late in the afternoon, however, out of an abundance of caution, and due to intensifying fire behavior on the Algar Lake Complex fires, all firefighting crews including heavy equipment operators were pulled back to their staging areas. The safety of Albertans and of firefighting personnel is always top priority.

A noticeable smoke increase could be seen from Fort McMurray and surrounding areas this afternoon. This is due to the increase in fire behaviour and westerly wind gusts of up to 30 km/h.

Download the 511 app to stay up to date on any road closures in Alberta. This wildfire could impact visibility on Highway 63, always drive with extreme caution.

MCX004 - Rabbit Lake Complex

MWF060, MWF078, and MWF074)

MWF060 is located approximately 6 km east of the Slave Lake Forest Area border and the Fort McMurray Forest Area border. It is also and estimated to be 9810 ha in size. This wildfire is classified as out of control and was caused by lightning.

MWF074 is located northeast of MWF060, is 0.2 ha in size and is classified as out of control.

MWF078 is located southwest of MWF060, is 735 ha in size, and is classified as out of control.

Currently, we have four firefighters and two helicopters working on this complex.

Today, MWF060 showed extreme fire behaviour. This was due to hot and dry weather conditions. Structure protection was set up on some nearby infrastructure.

Fire Ban banner

A fire ban is in effect as of 4 p.m. on July 10 in the entire Forest Protection Area of Alberta, including the Fort McMurray Forest Area, due to hot and dry conditions.

Cities, towns, villages and summer villages, as well as federal lands (such as national parks), are exempt from this ban. These jurisdictions have the authority to issue their own bans and may have complementary bans in place.

Under this fire ban:

All fire permits are suspended or cancelled.
No new fire permits will be issued.
Some allowances can be made for essential agricultural and industrial burning, if approved by a forest officer.

Prohibited:

All outdoor wood fires, including wood campfires on public land, private land, designated campgrounds, and backyard firepits
Barbeque charcoal briquettes
Fireworks and exploding targets

Allowed:

Propane/natural gas-powered appliances
Indoor wood fires inside a structure (such as a facility, building, tent or RV) and contained within a device with a chimney and spark arrestor
Open flame oil devices (such as deep fryers and tiki torches). All devices must be CSA approved and used per manufacturer’s standards.

We want to remind everyone that along with the rest of the forest area, there should be absolutely no wood campfires, charcoal barbeque, fireworks, or exploding targets in the Richardson backcountry. Conditions are very dry and hot and we want to reduce the chance of new wildfires starting.

If you see a wildfire, report it immediately by calling 310-FIRE.

The fire ban will remain in effect until conditions improve.

See the fire ban factsheet.

More information on the fire ban for Fort McMurray's Urban Service Area

For more information, visit Alberta Fire Bans.

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See the forecasted fire danger map

FORT MCMURRAY WILDFIRE UPDATE

Since January 1, 2024 there have been 88 wildfires in the Fort McMurray Forest Area, burning a total of approximately 151,077 hectares (ha).

MWF043 was discovered on July 2 and is located approximately 18 km west of the Athabasca River and 56 km south of the southern Wood Buffalo National Park border. It is classified as out of control and is estimated to be 900 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF068 was discovered on July 10 and is located approximately 4.5 km east of the High Level Forest Area border and 13 km north of the Slave Lake Forest Area border. It is classified as being held and is estimated to be 100 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF045 was discovered on July 2 and is located approximately 23 km south of the Wood Buffalo National Park border. It is classified as being held and is estimated to be 2,300 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF056 was discovered July 3 and is located approximately 41 km north of the cattail complex (MCX002). It is classified as being held and is estimated to be 400 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF057 was discovered July 3 and is located approximately 65 km east of Fort McKay and approximately 70 km northeast of Fort McMurray. It is classified as being held and is estimated to be 13.8 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF010 was discovered on April 21 and is located near the Birch Mountains. It is classified as under control at 7,976 ha in size. This means that this wildfire is contained and will be extinguished. This wildfire was human-caused.

MWF017 was discovered on May 9 and is located southwest of Fort McMurray. It is classified as under control at 18,593 ha. This means that this wildfire is contained and will be extinguished. The cause of this wildfire remains under investigation.

MWF065 was discovered July 9 and is located approximately 7 km southeast of Highway 63 and approximately 3.4 km from Maqua Lake. It is classified as under control and is estimated to be 6 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

MWF067 was discovered on July 10 and is located approximately 4 km southwest of Gregoire Lake 176. It is classified as under control and is currently 0.3 ha in size. This wildfire was caused by lightning.

For up-to-date information on the current wildfire situation, visit Alberta Wildfire Status.

SAFETY AROUND SKIMMERS (Water Bombers)

If you're planning to be out on the lake this weekend, please keep in mind that skimmer planes are often using various lakes to refill with water.

This is another critical resource for firefighting operations, so we ask anyone on water bodies to stay alert and watch out for skimmers. If you see a skimmer coming towards a water body, ensure you get within 30 metres of shore so they can safely refill.

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DRONES are not allowed to be flown within 5 nautical miles (or 9.3 kilometers) of a wildfire.

If you fly a drone within this distance of a wildfire, it immediately halts firefighting operations because it is not safe to be flying with drones in the air. The penalty for interfering with wildfire control operations can land you a court appearance, for more information go to the Government of Alberta website.
For more information from Transport Canada about drones near wildfires, visit Transport Canada's website.

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