Three out-of-control fires, including one northwest of Bonnville, are raging in the province right now, and with a dry spring and high winds affecting the local area, a fire ban may be a possibility in the County of St. Paul.
The Bonnyville-area wildfire started at about 6 p.m. on Sunday evening, according to Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (SRD). Residents became aware of the fire soon after as an ominous plume of dark grey smoke rose high above the MD and drifted east towards Cold Lake.
At around 7 p.m. the winds picked up and shifted direction, pushing flames and smoke in the direction of the Moose Lake Campground. Leslie Lozinski, forest information officer for SRD, confirmed some residents in the area were evacuated, however, attempts to confirm the number of evacuees were unsuccessful.
The wildfire was estimated at 650 hectares in size and was still classified as out of control as of the Journal’s press deadline Monday.
But things have thus far been “relatively quiet” for fire departments closer to home, according to Dennis Bergheim, director of environmental and emergency services for the County of St. Paul.
The County of St. Paul suspended fire permits last week, but has still not put out a complete fire ban, he said. “That will be determined Wednesday or Thursday this week. Then we’ll have a better picture of what’s happening. The issue right now is the high winds that are occurring,” he said. But a complete ban would put an end to burning barrels, charcoal barbecues, fire pits and more, while not necessarily putting an end to careless behaviour, he said.
“You can’t teach common sense.” Bergheim noted that even an errant cigarette butt or a spark from a quad could light up a fire.
Thus far, the area has seen several dry springs, but has avoided serious disaster. “We’ve never had a major, major outbreak of fire like they have had in other municipalities, nothing to the degree of some of these (fires),” said Bergheim.
“I don’t know if it’s a matter of us being lucky, or people being more responsible,” he said, adding that for the time being, to avoid a potential fire disaster, people should be cautious and exert fire safety.
In Bonnyville, fire crews worked through the night Sunday and into Monday morning using bulldozers to build a fireguard in an effort to contain the south end of the flames. “If the winds are too strong, it could jump the guard, but that did not happen and we currently have crews reinforcing the fire guard, making it wider,” said Lozinski.
During peak moments of the fire Sunday evening, multiple air-tankers and helicopters could be seen flying overhead, dumping water and fire-retardant on the flames. Witnesses said at times flames reached 100 feet in the air, while burning through the older portions of the forested area.
According to SRD, the exact source of the wildfire is still under investigation.
There have been 294 wildfires burning in Alberta, since April 1, with 55 currently burning and three deemed ‘out of control.’ Lozinski said the numbers are not out of the ordinary for this time of year.
