Gender reveal gone wrong: $600 ticket given after explosive device causes wildfire in northern Alberta
Explosive devices emitting blue and pink clouds of smoke are playful ways for new couples to reveal their baby’s gender — until one individual started a fire in the Fort McMurray area.
Travis Fairweather, a wildlife information officer with Alberta Wildfire, told CTV News Edmonton the recent fire was caused during a gender reveal party.
“This wildfire grew to be 0.43 hectares in size, which is over half the size of a CFL football field,” said Fairweather.
There were a total of 10 firefighters and support staff called to fight the flames. The person responsible was fined $600 for the fire, Faireweather said.
“So far this season, this is the third unintentional wildfire started by an exploding target,” he said.
Seventy-six per cent of wildfires this year have been human-caused, and 88 per cent of all wildfires last year were human-caused, according to Alberta Wildlife.
Fairweather reminds Albertans the province requires written permission to use fireworks or exploding targets in the Forest Protection Area year-round.
People who see smoke or fire in a forest are asked to call 310-FIRE.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.