As of 11 a.m. on May 23, the County of St. Paul was put under a fire ban. Most of northern Alberta was also under a fire ban.
A media release from Fire Chief Trevor Kotowich on Thursday morning stated that as of 11 a.m., the County of St. Paul would be under a fire ban.
This means no open fires are allowed in campgrounds or in any other area within the county. And, all fire permits are suspended or cancelled and no new permits will be issued.
"The fire ban applies to all areas within the County of St. Paul including campgrounds. The Town of St. Paul is exempt at this time, as this municipality has the authority to issue their own restriction should the need arise," reads the media release.
All open fires within the County are banned, including campfires in campgrounds and random camping areas. This includes charcoal briquettes, turkey fryers and tiki torches. Other items, such as fireworks, flying lanterns and exploding targets are also prohibited.
Portable propane fire pits and gas propane stoves designed for cooking or heating are allowed.
"Currently, the fire situation throughout the county is severe. What is obviously not helping is the hot, dry weather we are currently experiencing, along with the winds," said Kotowich, on Wednesday afternoon.
"The forecast, long-term is calling for high temperatures, low humidity which is not good, and affects fire behaviour drastically. A total fire-ban could be literally hours away," said Kotowich, prior to the fire ban being put in place on Thursday morning.
Neighbouring municipalities such as the M.D. of Bonnyville, and the County of Two Hills were put under fire bans earlier, along with a large section of the northern part of the province, which was under a Northern and Central Alberta Fire Ban imposed by the province. The Lac La Biche forest area, which touches the northern part of the County of St. Paul, is included in the provincial ban.
Firefighters in northern and central Alberta were busy battling blazes over the May long weekend, and continue to do so. The community of High Level, and other communities in that area, were evacuated on May 20 when a fire came within just a few kilometres of the Town of High Level.
As of mid-week, residents were still not allowed back home.
A fire in the Edson area also resulted in a temporary highway closure over the long weekend.
"We do not have any firefighters operating under the auspices of the St. Paul Fire Department at any of the locations throughout the province," said Kotowich, when asked if any of St. Paul's members had been helping at other locations in the province. "We have not been asked as of yet, but that request would come through the Office of the Fire Commissioner, first."
Provincial Ban for northern Alberta
A provincial fire ban prohibiting campfires and unauthorized burning, and restricting the recreational use of off-highway vehicles throughout most of northern Alberta was expanded on Wednesday afternoon, May 22.
"The fire ban now includes the forest areas around Lac La Biche, Slave Lake, Whitecourt, Edson and Grande Prairie, and then north to the Northwest Territories border. A recreational ban on off-highway vehicles on public land is included in the ban," reads a media release from the Government of Alberta.
“Weather conditions have increased the wildfire hazard level throughout central and northern Alberta. Expanding the fire ban and off-highway vehicle restrictions will help reduce the chance of further wildfires," said Devin Dreeshen, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, last week.
As per the previous ban, all fire permits remain suspended in the fire ban area. The use of off-highway vehicles for recreational purposes continues to be prohibited on public land due to the high wildfire risk in the same area.
“We ask the public to support the bans and restrictions to ensure human-caused fires are avoided so that our wildfire teams can concentrate on areas like the one near High Level. We thank the public for their cooperation in an effort to support all of our wildfire teams and local firefighters," said Dreeshen.
Individuals found contravening a fire ban may be subject to a $287 fine, or could be held liable for all costs associated with fighting a wildfire, according to the provincial government. Other jurisdictions, including municipalities and provincial parks, may also issue fire restrictions or bans.
For updated information on fire bans, visit albertafirebans.ca for more information.
