There are four wildfires of note in the Forest Protection Area of Alberta.
MCX002 - Cattail Lake Complex
Wildfires MWF047 and MWF077 and MWF079 are part of the Cattail Lake Complex. All of these wildfires are out of control except for MWF079, which is being held.
MWF047 is the largest wildfire in this complex and is 105,515 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.
MWF077 is 19,122 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.
Smokey conditions continued yesterday, keeping wildfire behavior lower with no significant activity or growth observed. We are running 24 hour operations on this complex in order to make progress at night, while wildfire activity is traditionally lower.
There are over 250 firefighters and support staff, 19 helicopters and 30 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.
LCX001 - Kettle River Complex
Wildfires LWF123, LWF124, LWF126, LWF136, LWF141, LWF142, LWF143, LWF152, LWF155, LWF156, LWF159, and LWF164 are a part of the Kettle River Complex
LWF136 is classified as out of control at 500 ha in size. It is located approximately 12 km north of the community of Janvier and 3 km from highway 881.
LWF164 is classified as out of control at 936 ha in size. It is located approximately 15km northeast of Conklin along highway 881.
LWF152 is classified as out of control at 406 ha in size.
Fire activity on LWF136 was low yesterday and night vision-enabled helicopters were able to work through the night. Heavy equipment and crews are making good progress in establishing a fire guard on the southern perimeter.
Firefighters, aircraft and heavy equipment are working on this complex. An incident management team is overseeing operations.
The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo has issued an evacuation alert for the hamlet of Janvier.
See the Lac La Biche Forest Area update for more information.
HCX001 - Semo Complex
Wildfires HWF053, HWF061, HWF081, HWF083, HWF136, HWF141 and HWF143 are part of the Semo Complex. All of these wildfires are out of control.
HWF061 is the largest wildfire in the complex and is more than 90,000 ha in size.
It is located 8 km northeast of Jon D'or Prairie, 4.2 km north of Fox Lake, 13 km northwest of Garden River and 2.2 km from Highway 58. It was caused by lightning.
Minimal growth was observed on this wildfire yesterday due to smokey conditions. Structural protection is being set up and tested in Garden River and will start in John D'or Prairie afterwards. Today, heavy equipment and firefighters will continue their work in expanding containment lines.
There are over 200 firefighters and support staff, 14 helicopters and 132 pieces of heavy equipment working on this complex. An incident management team is overseeing operations. Additional resources will be added later this week.
Garden River, John D'or Prairie and Fox Lake are all under an evacuation order. Visit Alberta Emergency Alert for more information.
See the High Level Forest Area update for more information.
MCX003 - Algar Lake Complex
Wildfires MWF069 and MWF086 make up the Algar Lake Complex. Both of these wildfires are out of control.
MWF069 is 16,555 ha in size. This wildfire is located 10 km west of Highway 63 and 40 km southwest of Fort McMurray.
MWF086 is 1,682 ha in size. This wildfire is located approximately 8km north of the MWF069 perimeter.
Yesterday, this wildfire experienced low fire behaviour due to smokey conditions. Some activity was observed on the west side of the fire, but there was no significant spread. Heavy equipment is working on containment lines with the support of crews and helicopter bucketing.
There are over 175 firefighters and support staff working on this complex, along with aircraft and heavy equipment. An incident management team is overseeing operations.
See the Fort McMurray 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