1 injured after fire at waste management facility in Leduc County

A worker was hospitalized after a fire broke out at the Leduc and District Regional Waste Management Facility Saturday night. 

Leduc County Fire Services said in a news release Sunday firefighters responded to the call at 8:20 p.m. Crews arrived on scene and worked to contain the fire, which spread rapidly due to strong winds.

Initial efforts by on-site staff to control the fire were unsuccessful, according to the waste management facility, located at 49444 Range Road 244 in Leduc County. 

"The site manager and two other operators attempted to put the fire out with soils and the regular process they've been trained on," said Lee Harris, director of operations for the facility. 

"That didn't work, so the fire got out of control. There were really strong winds yesterday which inflamed them."

The injured worker is employed by Environmental 360 Solutions, a contractor at the site. The company has not yet responded to a request for comment from CBC News. 

Harris said the man was hospitalized but the facility is respecting the family's space and has no update on his current condition.  

Quick action from contractors and first responders helped keep the situation contained, according to Harris. 

"The on-site contractors did an amazing job of smouldering everything with dirt," he said. "It's under control, but because landfill fires are sort of unpredictable, we're monitoring this site to make sure those flare-ups don't happen."

Alberta Occupational Health and Safety is now investigating the incident.

"It is always tragic when a worker is hurt or dies on the job," OHS said in a statement to CBC News." Alberta's government is focused on having all workers return home healthy and safe after every workday."  

The cause of the fire is still unknown and the event has been turned over to the landfill operator, Leduc County said, adding that it may be some time before a cause is determined.   

The county clarified in a statement that it did not contract any equipment operators during the emergency response. 

Harris, with the landfill facility, said the fire was out shortly after it started but certain areas are still closed to the public.  

 "We're lucky enough that we have two landfills on site," he said. "So we're using the one to the east right now as opposed to the one to the west."