There are five wildfires of note in the Forest Protection Area of Alberta.
MCX002 - Cattail Lake Complex
Wildfires MWF047 and MWF077 are part of the Cattail Lake Complex. Both of these wildfires are out of control. These wildfires were caused by lightning.
MWF047 is the largest wildfire in this complex and is 101,219 ha in size.
This wildfire is approximately 6.8 km northeast of industrial facilities, 53 km northeast Fort McKay and 68 km northeast of Fort McMurray. Yesterday the fire showed extreme fire behaviour and grew to the east due to slight winds.
MWF077 is 15,206 hectares in size. This wildfire is located approximately 13.7 km south of industrial facilities, 46 km east of Fort McKay and 38 km northeast of Fort McMurray. Yesterday, helicopters bucketed along the northern edge of this wildfire. Most of the fire growth was towards the east. Another challenging day for firefighting is expected today.
There are 246 firefighters and support staff, 19 helicopters and 29 pieces of heavy equipment working on this complex. An incident management team is overseeing operations.
See the Fort McMurray Forest Area update for more information.
LWF136 - Kettle River Fire
Wildfire LWF136 is burning out of control in the Lac La Biche Forest Area. This wildfire is approximately 214 hectares (ha) in size. It is located approximately 15 km north of Janvier. Heavy equipment along with firefighters are working to create a fireguard on the south and east sides to limit growth towards the highway. Helicopters are bucketing on priority areas and airtankers will be responding to help create a fireguard.
An evacuation alert has been issued for the hamlet of Janvier by the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo due to this wildfire.
See the Lac La Biche Forest Area update for more information.
HCX001 - Semo Complex
Wildfires HWF053, HWF061, HWF081, HWF083 and HWF136 are part of the Semo Complex. Wildfire HWF136 is a new start that was detected July 16 and is now included in this complex. All of these wildfires are out of control.
HWF061 is the largest wildfire in the complex and is 51,203 ha in size. It is located 16 km northeast of Jon D'or Prairie, 19 km north of Fox Lake, 30 km northwest of Garden River and 9 km from Highway 58. It was caused by lightning.
There was active fire behavior on the southwest side of the wildfire perimeter., presenting challenging conditions for firefighters. Heavy equipment continues to work on building fireguards around the perimeter.
There are over 200 firefighters and support staff, ten helicopters and 43 pieces of heavy equipment working on this complex. An incident management team is overseeing operations. Additional resources will be added later this week.
See the High Level Forest Area update for more information.
MCX003 - Algar Lake Complex
Wildfire MWF069 and MWF086 make up the Algar Lake Complex. As a result of a lightning storm, wildfire MWF086 was detected yesterday and is now included in this complex.
Wildfire MWF069 is out of control and is 15,000 ha in size. This wildfire is located 11 km west of Highway 63 and 40 km southwest of Fort McMurray.
Wildfire MWF086 is out of control and is approximately 500 ha in size. This wildfire is located approximately 8km north of the MWF069 perimeter.
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 yesterday and did progress east toward highway 63. At this time, the most active areas are still over 10 km from the highway.
There are 159 firefighters and support staff, seven helicopters and heavy equipment assigned to this complex. An incident management team is overseeing operations.
See the Fort McMurray Forest Area update for more information.
HWF030 - Amber River Fire
Wildfire HWF030 is out of control and is approximately 3,050 ha in size. This wildfire is located 10km southwest of Zama City. Dozers have completed a fireguard along the south side of the fire, and crews are working on reinforcing containment lines. Helicopters are supporting this wildfire by bucketing on priority areas.
See the High Level Forest Area update for more information.
A wildfire of note is determined to be of significant public interest and may pose a threat to public safety, communities or critical infrastructure.
Wildfires of note do not typically include mutual aid wildfires located outside of the Forest Protection Area of Alberta. Alberta Wildfire provides assistance on a mutual aid wildfire but is not the lead agency.
The Forest Protection Area of Alberta is divided into ten forest areas. Find the latest updates for each area or subscribe to receive them in your inbox.
Rocky Mountain House Forest Area