Alberta issues fire ban for entire forest protection area as extreme temperatures continue
Northern community ordered to evacuate as heat exacerbates wildfire situation
A fire ban has been implemented for Alberta's entire forest protection amid scorching temperatures that have prompted heat warnings, strained crews battling out-of-control wildfires and forced the evacuation of a northern community.
The fire ban, which went into effect as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, covers much of northern Alberta and the eastern slopes of the Rockies.
Under it, all fire permits issued by the Alberta government are now suspended or cancelled, and all outdoor wood fires are banned, including those in campgrounds and in backyard firepits. Charcoal barbecues, fireworks and exploding targets are also prohibited.
"It is crucial that Albertans avoid any activities that fall under this ban to prevent new wildfires from breaking out," the province said in the bulletin.
Cities, towns, villages, summer villages and federal lands such as national parks are exempt from the ban. They have the authority to issue their own bans and may have them in place already, the province said in an online bulletin.
Appliances powered by propane or natural gas are not banned. Wood fires inside structures such as a building, tent or recreational vehicle are permitted, as long as they have a chimney and spark arrestor.
Hot and dry conditions have led to 137 new wildfire starts since July 1, the government said.
Growing wildfire prompts evacuation
Earlier Wednesday, an evacuation order was issued for people in Garden River, Alta., located about 800 kilometres north of Edmonton in Wood Buffalo National Park.
Alberta Wildfire said the community are not in immediate danger, but there are concerns a wildfire burning about 30 kilometres away could cut off access to Highway 58, the only road into the community of about 700 people.
"If the fire continues on its current pathway, we don't want anyone getting trapped in Garden River due to lack of access to the highway, because that will be closed," Conroy Sewepagaham, chief of Little Red River Cree Nation, said in a video address published on Facebook on Wednesday.
Residents are told to be prepared to be away for multiple days and to bring medications and important documents. They have been urged to go to the Horizon Camp on the First Nations settlement of John D'Or Prairie.
Sewepagaham said the fire could threaten transmission lines, resulting in power outages in the communities of Garden River and Fox Lake.
Fire HWF061 is one of several out-of-control blazes in the Semo Wildfire Complex in northwestern Alberta.
Alberta Wildfire said Wednesday that it has been growing as a result of the "significant heat wave over the last few days" and noted rising temperatures will play a big factor in its continuing spread.
Extreme danger
Firefighters in the north are battling several out-of-control fires. The largest of these is the wildfire that prompted the Wednesday evacuation order for Garden City, which has grown to almost 40,000 hectares.
Further east, the largest blaze in the Cattail Lake Complex wildfire, about 70 kilometres northeast of Fort McMurray, grew significantly overnight and is now estimated to be about 28,000 hectares in size.
That fire has remained eight kilometres from Suncor's Firebag oilsands facility. In a Wednesday morning update, Alberta Wildfire said it was expecting "another challenging firefighting day today" with temperatures reaching a high of 35 C.
The hot weather combined with low relative humidity has also boosted wildfire concerns in the Edson forest area, west of Edmonton.
A Wednesday afternoon update noted that, despite a rainy spring, the forests are still dry. In combination with the low humidity and high temperatures, wildfire officials said intense fire behaviour is expected.
"The wildfire danger in the Edson forest area is now high," said the update. "Forest fuels are dry and fire risk is serious. Moderate to vigorous surface fire is expected, which may spread to treetops. Conditions may be challenging for fire suppression efforts."
In 2023, more than 8,000 residents of Edson were ordered to evacuate when a wildfire grew dangerously close to the town's southern boundary.
Records set
A ridge of high pressure brought record-breaking temperatures to some parts of Western Canada Tuesday.
A new record of 35.8 C was set in the Jasper area, eclipsing the previous high temperature of 34.4 set in 1926. At least 13 areas of the province broke historical records, Environment Canada said Wednesday.
Temperatures in the Edmonton area reached 34.1 C, tying the previous record set in 2015.
Overnight lows ranging from the mid-teens into the low 20s will not provide much relief from the daytime heat, the weather agency said.
Albertans trying to stay cool also helped break an energy consumption record set in 2021.
The Alberta Electric System Operator, the province's power grid operator, said a new all-time summer peak record of 11,820 megawatts was set Tuesday. The previous summer record was 11,721 MW, set on June 29, 2021.
Cooler temperatures will begin to move into northwestern regions of the province on Thursday, while parts of central and southern Alberta will moderate on Friday.Heat warnings are issued when very high temperature conditions are expected to pose an elevated risk of heat illnesses, such as heat stroke or heat exhaustion.
With files from The Canadian Press
