Part of Yellowhead County evacuation order lifted; returning residents warned to stay ready

Rain allowed Yellowhead County to lift part of an evacuation order on Wednesday.

At 6 p.m., Highway 16 reopened and residents north of the corridor and town of Edson were allowed to return home.

"The fire by Shining Bank and Peers – the southern boundary is giving [fire crews] a little bit of grief. They're working on that still, but we're confident in saying that that is an area that we're able to bring our residents back in a safe fashion," Luc Mercier, the chief administrative officer of Yellowhead County, said during a virtual news conference at noon.

However, fires in the McLeod River valley and south of Edson and Carrot Creek remain a large concern, so those areas will remain evacuated.

"The incident commander cannot give us that assurance just yet, even with the rains. The rains are just having a minimal impact on the fire and that's a point of concern," Mercier said.

EDSON TO REMAIN EVACUATED UNTIL SERVICES RESTORED

Edson, as well as an area west of the town and areas south of Highway 16, remains evacuated.

On June 14, 2023, Yellowhead County lifted part of an evacuation order north of Edson and Highway 16. However, the areas remained on a four-hour evacuation notice.

Returning evacuees were warned they would not be able to enter Edson or access any of its services, as they have not yet been restored. This includes gas utilities and hospital and emergency medical services.

"Those are pieces we need to have in place before we can consider lifting this order," Edson's chief administrative officer, Christine Beveridge, said during an 8 p.m update.

Wednesday morning, they had hoped to be able to deliver better news in the evening.

However, Edson Mayor Kevin Zahara said they had not been able to finalize plans for health services – particularly, "a lack of availability of ambulances" – with Alberta Health Services.

"I do have a call in to [Health] Minster [Adriana} LaGrange on that, as well as [Municipal Affairs] Minister [Ric] McIver," Zahara told community members.

Beveridge added, "I know that this hasn't been easy. This is incredibly challenging on the team. I know the Town of Edson side is very challenged by this news tonight – that we're not able to give you better news.

"We want you home, however, we need to make sure everything is in place before you come home."

The fire closes to Edson remains about 1.5 kilometres away from the community, separated by fire guards.

Although highways are being reopened, traffic will be detoured from the townsite.

"You need to make sure that you bring everything with you that you need to because the services are not going to be open here," advised Yellowhead County Mayor Wade Williams, who also told returning county residents to prepare for slow traffic.

More information about re-entry is available online.

'I WOULDN'T UNPACK YET'

The number of homes destroyed by wildfire this season in Yellowhead County has surpassed two dozen.

In an update Tuesday evening, officials confirmed 26 or 27 houses have been destroyed in the county, including in the Shining Bank, Wildwood, Hansonville, Lobstick and Reno Road areas.

Most burned earlier in the spring, but some were claimed more recently by the fires that have grown to a combined total of more than 400,00 hectares.

About 250 municipal firefighters have been joined by 400 provincial firefighters.

While the rain appears promising, fire crews do not expect it to have a long-term impact, Williams said.

"We've been through this before. We've seen this in the past," he said, referencing earlier evacuations.

"Right now, things are calm a little bit. As things start to dry out and the temperatures come up, we do expect more flare ups. So you need to be vigilant, you need to be ready to go on four hours' notice.

"So come home, enjoy your homes; I wouldn't unpack quite yet. We're hoping that it doesn't come to another evacuation, but we just don't know. We're not out of the woods yet."

BEWARE OF SCAMS

The leaders are also warning residents of scammers trying to capitalize on the situation.

"Please be super diligent when you are engaging in phone calls you might be receiving or online stuff, not giving out your personal information or your addresses or necessarily donating to causes that are not official causes. People will try to take advantage of these situations so please be super diligent and only engage with people you actually know and trust," Zahara said.

"There is [sic] people who put out fake profiles online, fake pages that seem legitimate, so just be cautious about that."

He only said "a number" of people have reported suspicious behaviour.