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.

To see where the smoke is coming from, check out the FireSmoke website.

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, MWF077 and MWF079. All of these wildfires are classified as out of control, except for MWF079 which is being held. All of these wildfires were caused by lightning.

There are 251 personnel currently working on this complex, including 137 firefighters, 58 incident management team members, support staff and contractors. We have 19 helicopters and 30 pieces of heavy equipment working this complex.

MWF047- estimated to be 105,515 ha in size. See the most recent map available.

Currently, MWF047 is approximately:

6.8 km northeast of industrial facilities.
53 km northeast of Fort McKay.
68 km northeast of Fort McMurray.

MWF077- estimated to be 19,112 ha in size. See the most recent map available.

Currently, MWF077 is approximately:

6.7 km south of industrial facilities.
46 km east of Fort McKay.
48 km northeast of Fort McMurray.

Today, we had moderate fire behaviour, but it only started to pick up later in the afternoon. For most of the day, the heavy smoke helped to keep fire behaviour low. Same as the last few days, crews and helicopters are a bit delayed in getting out to the fireline. We expect fire activity to pick up tomorrow as there are stronger winds in the forecast.

To date, crews have made very good progress on this complex and the lines they have worked closest to values have so far held. This work will continue today. As visibility allows, helicopters will bucket today in key locations, mainly on the southwest edge of MWF047 and the northwest edge of MWF077.

Our retardant application truck will continue to spray more power poles, expanding further into surrounding areas as needed. This is a valuable resource for helping to protect infrastructure as it can be more precise in it's application compared to airtankers.

Tomorrow, the forecast predicts a high of 29 degrees Celsius and a low relative humidity of 30 per cent. Winds are expected to come from the south-southeast at 15 km/h, gusting up to 40 km/h. Then they're expected to shift to come out of the west-southwest at 20 km/h, gusting up to 45 km/h by the early evening, then finally shifting to come out of the west-northwest at 15 km/h overnight. There's a 40 per cent chance of 1-5 mm of rain and thundershowers.

Over the next few days, the weather is expected to change. There's rain in the upcoming forecast for Wednesday and Thursday this week. However, we don't know if it will land on the complex and what impact it could make. Tuesday is likely going to be a challenging day for this complex because the incident management team will be transitioning with a new incident management team and the forecast predicts much stronger winds than what we've experienced over the past week.

Last night, we again had a nighttime capable drone monitoring the wildfires in this complex. This drone is given special clearance to fly within our NOTAM (Notice to Air Mission) and is controlled by an operator who is trained and qualified in how to operate this aircraft safely. This drone can pinpoint specific locations, monitor fire growth, and the operator can then notify the incident management team if the wildfire(s) were close to impacting nearby values. This drone is a critical resource for nighttime firefighting operations and is a fairly new piece of technology in the wildland firefighting world.

As a reminder, operators of drones that DO NOT have special clearance to fly within our NOTAM are breaking the law and the penalty for interfering with wildfire control operations can land you a court appearance. Go to the Government of Alberta website, or for more information from Transport Canada about drones near wildfires, visit Transport Canada's website.

(Fire behaviour picked up a little bit today on MWF077, July 22, 2024)

Wildfire MCX003 - Algar Lake Complex

MWF069 –classified as out of control - estimated at 17,127 hectares
MWF086 – classified as out of control - estimated at 1,682 hectares

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

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

MWF086 is a lightning-caused fire that started on July 16. Located north of MWF069, this fire is not causing any immediate concerns.

37 km southwest of Fort McMurray

There are 164 personnel from Alberta, New Brunswick and Ontario assigned to the Algar Lake Complex. Among them are forest firefighters, heavy equipment operators, a structure protection group supervisor, an ignition team, and a 15-person incident management team.

Eight helicopters and 25 pieces of heavy equipment are dedicated to MCX003.

For the fourth day in a row, smoke drift continued to impact air operations at the Algar Lake Complex, as smoke from active wildfires is drifting into the Fort McMurray Forest Area from Northern Alberta, Northern Saskatchewan and the Territories. Helicopters remained grounded all day today.

This smoke cover also continued to temper daytime highs throughout the day today, maintaining favorable working conditions for crews and equipment on the ground, due to reduced fire behaviour. For more information and a visual representation of smoke drift patterns and forecasts, you can consult the interactive map at firesmoke.ca.

Weather for Tuesday may create significant challenges for firefighters. A high of 27 degrees Celsius is expected for Tuesday, with low relative humidity values forecast at 35-50%. Significantly windier conditions are expected as a cold front will sweep through the area of the Algar Lake Complex. Winds will start out South to Southwesterly at 15-20 km/h with 40-45 km/h gusts possible. Around 3 pm, winds are expected to shift to southwesterly at 15-20 km/h with gusts of around 40 km/h. Another wind shift is expected at closer to 6 pm where winds will become westerly at 15-20 km/h, gusting to 35-40 km/h. There is a 60% chance of precipitation overnight into Wednesday, when 2-5 mm of rain are forecast.

Firefighters worked on the northern edge of the northeast corner of MWF069 today, setting up pumps and hose. They continued to work on the eastern side of the northeast corner, moving further into the perimeter, extinguishing hot spots. Crews continued to make the most of good working conditions with lower fire intensity, as they prepare for a windier day tomorrow which could increase fire behaviour. Limiting fire spread toward the east, and toward highway 63 remains the priority.

Heavy equipment teams are continuing to establish control lines north of the northeast corner of fire MWF069.

Tomorrow is expected to bring higher winds than have been experienced in more than a week. Crews have been briefed to keep safety in mind and to keep an eye out for falling trees with the wind gusts forecast for later today and into tomorrow. A fire behaviour advisory has been issued for the Forest Protection Area of Alberta from July 22 to 24. Fuels remain dry as the province has been experiencing hot and dry weather for an extended period of time. There is potential for an increase in fire behaviour. Structure protection crews have plans in place and are ready to respond. Safety is top of mind. Fire management specialists are keeping a close eye on conditions.

(Algar Lake Complex’s Fire Behaviour Analyst setting up a portable weather station in the area of MWF069 to more closely monitor weather conditions. Weather stations measure wind speed, direction, rainfall, temperature and relative humidity.)

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 5 km east of the Slave Lake Forest Area border and the Fort McMurray Forest Area border. It is estimated to be 20,219 ha in size. This wildfire is classified as out of control and was caused by lightning.

MWF074 is located northeast of MWF060, is 186 ha in size and is classified as out of control.

MWF078 is located southwest of MWF060, is 2,592 ha in size, and is classified as out of control.

Structure protection is planned to be set up on some nearby infrastructure. More resources have been requested for this complex.

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 89 wildfires in the Fort McMurray Forest Area, burning a total of approximately 201,355 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.

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, 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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Always be cautious when recreating outdoors.

Off-highway vehicles (OHVs) have exhaust systems that get hotter than 200°C. At these temperatures, built-up materials (such as grass, muskeg, moss, or other debris) can heat up, smoulder and ignite.

These can fall to the ground as you are riding, starting a wildfire.

OHV tips.

CONTACT:

Emily Smith

Wildfire Information Officer | MCX002 Cattail Lakes Complex

Phone: 780-799-9253

Email:emily.smith@gov.ab.ca

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