Rocky Mountain House Area Update

The wildfire danger in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area is very high. 

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

AMENDMENTS TO FIRE BAN AND OHV RESTRICTION

A FIRE RESTRICTION is now in effect.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE FOREST AREA UPDATE

There are currently four wildfires burning in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area. Two of these wildfires are out of control and two are classified as under control. Since January 1, 2023, there have been 53 wildfires in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area, burning a total of 120,541.30 hectares (ha). 

For tomorrow, an upper ridge will build over Alberta giving generally fair and stable conditions. A weak system over Montana will spread showers and a TRW risk to the 3 southern zones near the US border, starting late morning. There is also a risk of scattered pop-up thunderstorms over the northern and eastern slopes in the afternoon. Highs of 23-30°C and RH values fall to 20-30% for most areas, resulting in widespread crossover conditions.

The upper ridge on Friday peaks over Alberta, while a system moving in from Montana brings showers and thunderstorms to southern sections of the province, mainly over the southern foothills. Fair and stable in the boreal. Highs 27-32°C for the boreal forest and northern/eastern slopes.

An upper ridge on Saturday will move east over Saskatchewan while an upper trough approaches from northern BC. An associated cold front will move over the western boreal down to the mountain parks in the afternoon. Fair and stable in the eastern half of the boreal. Showers at times heavy and thunderstorms are expected with the cold frontal passage. Highs generally 29-34°C, except 20-26C along the Rockies and far southern AB.

With the continued hot dry weather, the Rocky Mountain House area is seeing an increase with fire activity on existing fires and a few new starts. 

Initial attack and lookout resources remain diligent with fixed detection and aerial patrols.

ACTIVE WILDFIRES

RCU005 - This wildfire is classified as being held. Alberta Wildfire continues to support RCU005 with resources. Given the current weather conditions, the wildfire is not anticipated to grow past expected boundaries.

PEMBINA WILDFIRE COMPLEX - EWF031/039, RWF034/040

Today, there are 89 firefighters and IMT support staff being shared between all fires on the Complex. A BC Wildfire Service IMT has assumed command of the complex after a transitioning with the outgoing American IMT. There are 113 pieces of heavy equipment, and 21 helicopters assigned to the complex. An airtanker group is available to respond if necessary. 140 South African crew members arrived today. They were situationally briefed and will be joining the fireline efforts tomorrow. They will be performing gridding patrols and utilizing direct attack for hotspots in the area.

Today at the Pembina Complex, both fire EWF031 and EWF034 are exhibiting increased fire behavior within the fire perimeter as a result of a current warming and dying trend. When these fires were initially detected, they were extremely aggressive and primarily wind driven. Due to the significant speed the fires traveled a month ago, the fires burnt in mosaic like patterns, causing a patchwork of burned areas with pockets of unburnt fuels within. Unburnt fuel within the fire perimeter can still ignite and will display smoke columns in the area and to nearby communities and commuters on adjacent highways. Resources assigned to the fire are repositioning to areas of increased activity as required with aviation support.

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 130,762 ha in size.

Today, personnel were out assessing proposed secondary containment line along the western side of the fire to determine the positioning of staff. This operation commenced today, and the containment line will take approximately three to five days to construct from the northwest side of fire 31 to the southwest side of fire 40. Much of the containment line will be pre-existing roads.

Crews and heavy equipment have successfully placed containment line around the entire excursion located on the northeast portion of the fire, just west of Rat Creek. Increased activity is continuing to be observed within the perimeter on the eastern flank of the fire, just west of Rat Creek. Aerial support was repositioned today to support this area of the fire. Large columns of smoke were visible today and will continue to be visible over the coming days as pockets of green fuel within the fire perimeter ignite due to the warming and drying conditions.

An Infrared scan was completed again last night, and crews are utilizing direct attack on identified hotspots along the perimeter of the east flank, with aviation support when necessary. Scanning missions will continue every night to identify hotspots within the fire perimeter over the coming days. Personnel will continue to monitor and patrol the fire perimeter utilizing the infrared scan results.

EWF039 located near Carrot Creek, is currently being held. The fire is currently estimated to be 165 ha. The fire is fully wrapped in containment line and is a kilometer away from the Carrot Creek lookout tower. The Lookout staff will keep watch over the area.

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.

On the south side of RWF034 along the Brazeau River, dozer guard construction was completed on Sunday. Crews are supporting the guard and monitoring conditions working south along the west flank.

Today, personnel were out assessing proposed secondary containment line along the western side of the fire to determine the positioning of staff. This operation commenced today, and the containment line will take approximately three to five days to construct from the west side of fire 40 to the northwest of fire 31. The majority of the containment line will be pre-existing roads.

An Infrared scan was completed again last night, and crews are utilizing direct attack on identified hotspots along the perimeter of the east flank, with aviation support when necessary. Scanning missions will continue every night to identify hotspots within the fire perimeter over the coming days. Personnel will continue to monitor and patrol the fire perimeter utilizing the infrared scan results.

RWF040 The fire is 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. Containment line was completed a couple of days ago around the east, south, and west sides of the fire. Crews will continue working from the Blackstone River clockwise around the fire perimeter. 

Crews are actively supporting the guard with the installation of water systems which includes hose and pumps.

An infrared scan completed a few days ago indicated that there were several hotspots within the fire perimeter.

Credit to: Sarah Hall, Pembina Complex. Wildfire Information Officer, BC Wildfire Service.

For wildfire updates on this group of wildfires, please visit the Edson Forest Area Update.

If you have any questions or concerns about the PEMBINA COMPLEX, please call the Area Wildfire Information Officer:  Caroline Charbonneau at 780-740-1341.

Lightning through the area may cause new wildfire starts. Lightning-caused wildfires can smoulder in the ground for a few days before becoming active and visible. This is called a "holdover" fire. Alberta Wildfire follows weather forecasts and 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 600 wildfires burning a total of 1,210,955.85 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.