The wildfire danger is Moderate to High in the High Level Forest Area. The Area received scattered rain showers which has helped with a reprieve in fire activity and has allowed firefighters to work safely. The Fire Ban and OHV Restriction are still in effect until the Area receives a significant amount of rain.
Under this fire ban:
•All existing Fire Permits are suspended (or cancelled)
•No new Fire Permits will be issued
Prohibited:
•All outdoor wood fires are banned, including wood campfires on public lands, wood campfires on private land and provincial campgrounds
•Backyard firepits
•BBQ charcoal briquettes
•The use of fireworks and exploding targets
•The recreational use of off-highway vehicles (OHV) on public lands, including designated OHV trails
Allowed:
•Propane/natural gas-powered appliances
•Open flame oil devices (e.g., turkey deep fryers, tiki torches)
•Indoor wood fires contained within a device with a chimney and spark arrestor
•All appliances must be CSA approved and used per manufacturer’s standards
•Indigenous people when using an OHV for traditional purposes. Traditional purposes are hunting, fishing, and trapping – including the use of an OHV to travel to the location(s) for these purposes.
•Essential industry-related activities requiring the use of OHVs.
•Off-highway vehicle use is still permitted on private lands.
Stay away from active wildfire areas | For your safety and to ensure firefighters can do their job safely, please stay away from active wildfire areas. Your cooperation is essential.
Danger trees | Be extra cautious near burnt areas and avoid forested areas that have been recently affected by wildfire. Hazards remain from deep ash pits, burning peat and falling trees or branches, especially if windy.
Reporting wildfires | Please do not report smoke or flame from within an active wildfire area. Firefighters are diverted from essential tasks to respond to fires reported by the public. You may see smoke or flame within the existing boundary of a wildfire, this is normal.
Smoke | Lingering smoke may still be visible in some areas and in affected communities. Smoke inversions can trap air near the ground causing dangerous driving conditions and poor air quality. Please use extra caution when driving in smoky conditions, and take necessary precautions if you have smoke-related health concerns.
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
There are nine wildfires in the High Level Forest Area. Of these fires, five are classified as out of control (OC), and four are under control (UC). Please see the updates below regarding the Paskwa Fire and the Long Lake Complex. To see a map of the wildfires in the High Level Forest Area and across the province please click here.
wildfires of interest;
HWF064 | This fire was detected June 9th, 2023. This fire is classified as out of control (OC) with an estimated size of 4,689 hectares. This fire was previously being managed by the Long Lake Complex however it is back to being managed by the High level Forest Area and there is a Type 3 Incident Management Team in place.
The fire is located 10km north west of Zama City. The evacuation order for Zama has been suspended by Mackenzie County for the time being. The fire has not grown significantly due to favorable weather conditions. Alberta Wildfire and Mackenzie County will continue to monitor the situation closely.
Heavy equipment continues to work on brushing up dozer guards around the community. Structure protection units are in place and ready. They have been testing equipment and ensuring everything is in place. Crews have been deployed to the area and will be based at the Noralta in Zama City.
Firefighters gather together for their morning safety briefing before heading out to the fire line on the Long Lake Complex. June 20, 2023.
THE LONG LAKE COMPLEX | HWF036, HWF058 | JUNE 20, 2023 AS OF 2:00 PM
Fires HWF036, HWF058, and HBZ001 are being managed by the Incident Management Team (IMT) on the Long Lake fire and it is now called The Long Lake Complex.
HWF036 | This fire was detected on May 3, 2023. This fire is classified as Out of Control (OC) with a last recorded size of 165,400 hectares. Firefighters, aircraft and heavy equipment have made great progress therefore 45 percent of the fire line is contained and being held.
Todays warmer weather may see a return in more fire activity. The temperature will rise throughout the week and will hit 30 degrees on Friday.
The fire is still active on the western and northern border along the Hay River, moving towards the British Columbia border. Crews are monitoring the fire by air. If we see movement in the fire today due to the increased winds, it will most likely be in this area.
The northeast guard protecting the community of Chateh continues to hold with limited activity fire along this edge. Firefighters continue to monitor and strengthen containment lines. Vegetation inside the fire perimeter continues to burn, we are still finding hot spots within the fire.
Please be aware that there is still active fire burning in the area. Residents are reminded not to enter the fire area due to large number of firefighters, and equipment working. Burnt trees continue to fall which are dangerous.
HWF058 |This fire is located approximately 80 km southwest of the Town of High Level and approximately 17 km northwest of the of Paddle Prairie Metis Settlement boundary marker, where the Haig River meets the Chinchaga River. This fire is classified as out of control (OC) with an estimated size of 21,356 hectares.
The fire did not have as much activity yesterday as anticipated. The fire has remained within its perimeter at this stage. We continue to work closely with locals on understanding the local environment and getting access to the fire ground.
Equipment and dozers have been activated to access the fire from the north and south. A base camp for crews has been established at Keg River Camp, southwest of Paddle Prairie.
There are currently 320 personnel, 21 aircraft and 31 heavy equipment working across this complex of fires. The Incident Management Team continues to work closely with effected communities, First Nations and industry stakeholders.
There are three fires burning along the BC and Alberta border. They are in remote country with no community and are being monitored by air. The Long Lake Fire complex Incident Management Team is in daily contact with the BC Wildfire Service. For more information on these fires please go BC Wildfire Service (gov.bc.ca)
Weather Forecast | Long Lake Complex
The forecast for today is as follows, a temperature of 19 degrees, a relative humidity of 35 percent with winds north/northeast 20-25km gusting to 40-45km.
THE PASKWA FIRE | HWF030 | JUNE 20, 2023 AS OF 2:00 PM
The top priorities for managing the Paskwa Fire are full extinguishment of fire in Fox Lake, protecting Garden River, and working toward securing the fire perimeter to prevent significant fire spread. The Paskwa wildfire is currently 96,582 hectares in size and is classified as out of control (OC).
Smoke is lingering in the community of Fox Lake and ground crews are still working in the community actioning smokes with bucketing operations. Today, crews will be working to extinguish hotspots and remove danger trees along within the community as they’re spotted. These crews will be moved to action any surface fire if it arises in other areas of Fox Lake. We’re expecting heavy winds again today and this could affect safety on the line, crews will be strategically placed to handle these hazards.
The crews that were working in the oxbow performing mop-up duties on the northeast edge have completed their work and have been moved to the Davidson fire.
The southeast flank of the fire spread into the edge of Ruis Lake creating a natural fire break and extinguishment zone and hasn’t moved in the past few days.
Work has been completed in Fox Lake to extinguish 75m (250 ft) perimeters around structures, the removal of danger trees is ongoing. Crews have moved to the roadways to extinguish hotspots 250 feet outwards. Heavy equipment is working around larger hotspot areas where there is still potential for fire spread when conditions are right.
The high-volume water system, water lines, and sprinkler systems on structures are in place in the community of Garden River and structural firefighters will be available as needed. These are proactive measures to ensure the community is prepared should the fires move closer to Garden River.
Parks Canada and Alberta Wildfire have come together in Unified Command, allowing these two agencies to work together closely and share resources to protect the community of Garden River.
Paskwa conducted a plan for infrared scanning on the wildfire last night and this morning scans will be analyzed for a better understanding of any hot areas on the southwest flank of the fire. Many aerial scans have been completed over the course of this wildfire event and the information we receive from the data gives the operations team a better plan of where the deep burning hotspots in the area are located.
There are currently 122 personnel supporting the Paskwa/Davidson fire response consisting of wildland and structural firefighters, Incident Management staff, and Paskwa Fire Base support staff. There are also 12 helicopters and 19 pieces of heavy equipment dedicated to the Paskwa/Davidson fire.
Evacuation Alerts and Information
Little Red River Cree Nation has an evacuation order in place for the community of Fox Lake. The community of Garden River remains on an evacuation alert. For information regarding the evacuation, please stay informed by visiting the Little Red River Cree Nation’s Facebook page.
Weather Forecast | Paskwa Fire (HWF030)
Today, a daytime temperature of 21 degrees with winds out of the northeast at 20 km/h gusting of 35 km/h diminishing to northeast 15 km/h in the late afternoon. Relative humidity will be 30% which is less moisture than we’ve seen in the last few days and we’re preparing to see an increase in fire behavior this afternoon on the wildfires.
Davidson Lake fire (Wildfires 8, 9, 11, 13, 14) – Wood Buffalo National Park – June 20
Davidson Lake Fires were last estimated at 91,079 hectares and remains 6.2 km from the community.
The Davidson Lake Fires and Paskwa Wildfire are being managed by both Parks Canada and the province of Alberta, under Unified Command.
Fire behaviour has remained low since yesterday and is expected to be similar today.
Fire behaviour observed yesterday was primarily smoldering ground fire with occasional flare-ups. One small spot fire was observed around Trident Creek near the south end of the fire and will continue to be actioned by crews today – this spot fire poses no additional risk to the community at this time.
The dozer line running north from Peace Point Road (Old Smith Highway) along the western edge of the fire is now only about 300m short of being tied into Trident Creek. We expect to complete this section today, which will help prevent the spread of the fire towards the community of Garden River. No significant growth was observed on the Davidson Lake Fires yesterday and the fire remains approximately 6.2 km from the evacuation trigger line.
The community dozer guard north of Garden River is approximately 90% complete, and we expect this work to be completed today as well.
We expect to see another gusty morning with winds from the northeast at 20km/h gusting to 35km/h. In the afternoon, winds will lower to around 15km/h.
This information has been provided by the Wood Buffalo National Park, Fire Information Officer. For more information regarding fires burning within the Wood Buffalo National Park, please 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
WILDFIRE INFORMATION
Download the Alberta Wildfire app today and get access to accurate, real-time information on wildfires in your area. You can also find information on fire advisories, restrictions and bans across the province and much more all on your mobile device. Available for Apple and Android.
Before heading out, please check albertafirebans.ca to determine whether there are any fire advisories, fire restrictions or fire bans in effect for your destination.
Subscribe to the High Level Forest Area Update to receive an email when new information is posted. Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
WILDFIRE LINKS AND TOOLS
Volunteers, equipment owners/operators or firefighters looking to assist with these wildfires or any of the wildfires within the province can contact EmergencySupportOffers@gov.ab.ca.
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
Wildfire smoke is a tool used for the location of smoke firesmoke.ca
To see all the wildfires burning in Alberta click here.
WILDFIRE PREPARDNESS | Learn how you can prepare yourself for a wildfire by clicking here.
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Victoria Ostendorf
Wildfire Information Officer
High Level Forest Area
Mobile: 780-841-9387
Email: victoria.ostendorf@gov.ab.ca