As the hot summer weather continues across Alberta, many areas of the province have fallen under fire advisories.
According to Alberta’s Environment and Sustainable Resource Development’s website, there have been four new wildfires in the last two days, bringing the total number of fires in the province to six.
One of the worst has been near Rocky Mountain House where crews have been able to keep the fire contained but officials told CTV News it was now the size of Red Deer.
“We were expecting it to grow and it will continue to grow,” Sustainable Resource Development information officer, Shannon Stambaugh, said.
According to the Alberta Fire Bans website, a large portion of the province is under a fire advisory, including Parkland County, Slave Lake and Whitecourt.
“From Grande Prairie south we are looking at about a high to extreme wildfire hazard,” Stambaugh explained.
“What that means is that we are asking Albertans to be extra vigilant when they are out recreating or working in the forests these next few days.”
Parkland County’s fire chief said they were not imposing restrictions, but simply a warning to be careful.
“We would like our residents to be extra cautious when they are conducting their burn operations,” Jim Phelan explained.
“We would like everybody to have a heightened awareness of the risks of fire.”
Stambaugh advised those using an off-highway vehicle like a quad to be extra diligent.
“Please take the time to stop, knock the debris that is building up underneath your vehicle. That fire can actually get super-heated. It will drop from your vehicle and start a wildfire.”
For an update on provincial fire bans visit the provincial website or install their app.
To report a fire, call 310-FIRE(3473).
With files from Amanda Anderson
