Rocky Mountain House Area Update

The wildfire danger in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area is now Very High. 

Report smoke or fire in the forest by calling 310-FIRE (3473). 

A FIRE BAN and OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE RESTRICTION remain in effect for the entire Forest Protection Area of Alberta, including the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area

• All existing fire permits are suspended (or cancelled)
• No new fire permits will be issued

• 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

• 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. 

ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE FOREST AREA UPDATE

There are currently five wildfires burning in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area. Two of these wildfires are OUT OF CONTROL, one is being held and two are classified as under control. Since January 1, 2023 there have been 44 wildfires in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area, burning a total of 98,240.54 hectares (ha).

ACTIVE WILDFIRES

RCU005 - Thanks to the hard work of the County, Alberta Wildfire under the Mutual aid Agreement and the Canadian Armed Forced, we have now classified RCU005 as "being held"

Alberta Wildfire continues to support RCU005 with resources and given the current weather conditions the wildfire is not anticipated to grow past expected boundaries.

PEMBINA WILDFIRE COMPLEX - includes 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 82,666 ha in size. No significant growth has been observed since May 7, 2023.

A cold front is moving into the area on Friday causing  rapid wind shifts. Minimal relative humidity is forecasted in the upcoming days which will increase the risk of extreme fire behavior as crossover conditions remain, meaning that the temperature is higher than the relative humidity, causing intense fire behaviour. Weak overnight relative humidity recovery will affect fire behavior tomorrow. Light winds tomorrow morning will shift to the northwest in the early afternoon and gusts to 40 km/h are expected. Surface fires may move into the trees during peak burning period which typically begins around noon, peaks around 5pm and recedes later in the evening hours. 

There were 77 firefighters and support staff being shared between this fire and EWF039.  There were 37 pieces of heavy equipment and eight helicopters assigned to the complex. 

Aerial ignition opportunities were being evaluated around Minnow Lake but were not conducted. The opportunity will be reevaluated and will only occur if favourable conditions are available over the coming days. Increased smoke and columns may be visible to surrounding communities in the evening.

Ground crews were conducting small scale ground ignitions on the north side of the fire today. The purpose of this burn was to remove remaining fuel in between the fire perimeter and the planned containment lines in a controlled manner. Today, operations began around Minnow Lake where containment lines were be built where conditions permitted heavy equipment operations. Heavy equipment has completed the containment line from Wolf Creek Road to Minnow Lake East Road and Delmar Road south towards Dora’s Corner. 

Smoke was providing a smoke screen throughout the complex, allowing temperatures to be cool and relative humidity to increase. Smoke may remain into the evening. North/northwest winds gusting up to 35 km/h will become lighter this evening around 10 km/h. There is a chance of showers and thundershower risk Friday, otherwise this week will remain dry. 

RWF034 is located near the O'Chiese Reserve and classified as out of control. The fire is currently estimated at 67,042 ha in size. There were 58 firefighters and support staff working on this fire. There were 6 helicopters assigned to the complex. In addition, there were 22 pieces of heavy equipment.

Yesterday, the perimeter did not grow significantly on the south side of the fire and the containment line held. Today, the priority continued to be on the south side of the fire to establish a robust containment line. Direct attack was still being used when conditions were safe to do so. Smoldering ground fire conditions were observed early this morning. The fire behaviour subdued due to lower temperatures and higher relative humidity. The smoke acting as a screen in on this wildfire as well.

In addition, mop up and hotspotting is occurring near and within the O’Chiese Reserve. On the north side, crews are hotspotting and gridding to detect any remaining activity in this area in order to establish containment lines.

RWF040 is located 6 km northeast of the Forestry Trunk Road and Brown Creek Provincial Recreational Area and is classified as out of control. There are 76 firefighters and support staff shared between this fire and RWF034. The fire is currently estimated to be 2,200 ha in size. The fire saw some growth today but remained west of Blackstone River. 

These fires are part of the Pembina Complex, for more information on all the wildfires in the complex please refer to the Edson Forest Area page.

Lightning through the area has been causing many fire starts. Lightning can cause wildfire, which can smoulder on the ground for a few days before becoming active and visible. This is called a "holdover" fire. Alberta Forestry, Parks and Tourism follows weather forecasts and also tracks each lightning strike using a tracking system. This allows them to pinpoint where there are areas that have been heavily impacted by lightning. They then send out firefighters to patrol these areas.

PROVINCIAL WILDFIRE UPDATE 

Since January 1, 2023 in the Forest Protection Area, there have been 487 wildfires burning a total of 764,329.71 ha.

WILDFIRE DASHBOARD

The wildfire dashboard provides up-to-date wildfire information at the click of a button. This interactive tool displays important statistics on the number of active wildfires in the Forest Protection Area of Alberta, sizes, locations, suspected causes and more.

The dashboard builds on the former wildfire status map by displaying the most frequently accessed information in one convenient location.

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.