Despite the dry conditions in and around the capital region, fire crews outside of Edmonton are busy with a number of wildfires.
South of Spruce Grove, about 35 firefighters are dealing with a wildfire in a field west of Edmonton in the area of Range Road 273 and Township Road 522.
Officials said the fire started at about 3 p.m. Tuesday, it’s not clear how big the wildfire became, and it was mostly contained to the field before it spread to nearby trees.
Crews on the scene said there’s no risk to homes in the area, and no one is in danger – no residents have been officially evacuated, but officials asked residents affected by the smoke to leave until it clears.
“We’ve asked residents that are in the direct path of the smoke to leave the area for a little while, give us some time to get the smoke down and get it safe for them to come home,” Parkland County Fire Chief Jim Phelan said.
The scene could prove dangerous for firefighters as since the fire spread to the bush, falling trees could be a problem.
For this incident, officials said they had determined the blaze was sparked by a cigarette butt that was improperly disposed of in the area.
Wildfire burning in northern Strathcona County
Officials east of Edmonton were also busy Tuesday afternoon, after a call to 911 just after 1 p.m., prompted crews to battle a fire in north Strathcona County.
The blaze, which officials said Tuesday afternoon was about 50 acres in size, was burning in the area of Township Road 564 and Range Road 213A.
No evacuation order was in place for residents north of Highway 15 Tuesday afternoon, but crews were protecting one home in the area – the residents were not home at the time.
Firefighters from Fort Saskatchewan, Bruderheim and Sturgeon County were helping battle the blaze.
Officials also said a fire ban remained in place in the county.
Fire north of Slave Lake being held
After working on a blaze over the weekend, firefighters reported a wildfire burning north of the Town of Slave Lake had gained the upper hand on a wildfire in the area.
The blaze, which burned about 25 kilometres northeast of Slave Lake, was about 8.2 hectares in size – and was declared as being held Tuesday morning and was 60 percent contained by Tuesday evening.
Meanwhile, 26 firefighters and two helicopters continue to work to put out hot spots.
Officials said that blaze was caused by lightning that passed through the area Saturday night.
More information on the wildfire situation in Alberta can be found on the Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development website.
With files from Jeff Harrington
