Fire crews in the County of Grande Prairie have begun to gain the upper hand on a wildfire that forced some people from their homes over the weekend, but they caution their progress may be short-lived.
In an update to residents Monday morning, the county’s regional fire service and Alberta Wildfire said a wildfire burning south of the city is now 90 per cent contained.
Grande Prairie is about 390 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.
Officials said crews battling the Deer Ridge Estates wildfire made critical progress overnight, but that challenging conditions expected in the region on Monday may challenge that progress.
There is no precipitation in the forecast and crews are expecting crossover conditions, which include low humidity, elevated temperatures and high winds.
Ground crews will work in partnership with a bucketing helicopter to extinguish hot spots.
No homes or structures have been destroyed by the fire, officials said in Monday’s update.
Crews have been working to contain the fire which burned out of control throughout the weekend, triggering evacuation orders as parched, windy conditions grew more extreme.
An evacuation order remains in effect for an area of the county, which includes a stretch of rural properties, an industrial park, and two subdivisions on the outskirts of the Alberta city.
A total fire ban for the entire county, along with the towns of Beaverlodge, Sexsmith and Wembley, came in to effect at 8 a.m. MT Monday due to a high fire risk throughout the county.
As of Monday morning, about 100 evacuees forced from their homes had registered with the county.
The evacuation orders were issued Sunday afternoon.
Residents living south of Township Road 710 to 27th Avenue and east of Range Road 64 to Highway 40 remain on evacuation order.
An Alberta Emergency alert ordered people to evacuate immediately and to gather important documents, medication and medical devices and go to the Pomeroy Hotel in Grande Prairie.
Everyone else in the area is under an evacuation alert and should be prepared to leave immediately.
A wildfire burning north of the Deer Ridge Estates area burned out of control throughout the weekend, putting homes under threat, shutting down local roads and filling the sky with water tankers.
Fire crews were expected to work throughout the night Sunday.
In Sunday’s statement, county officials said no homes had been destroyed and efforts continue to protect local properties.
The wildfire risk in the region remains very high and crews are expected to face clear skies, an afternoon high of 18 C and wind gusts up to 40 km/h.
Fire conditions in the region are extreme with tinder dry grass and vegetation expected to create intense conditions for crews.
A wildfire near the Redwater Recreation Area, about 60 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, has also put residents on edge.
An evacuation alert remains in effect for an area of Sturgeon County north of the North Saskatchewan River. According to an emergency alert, residents in the area should be prepared to evacuate if the situation worsens.
An out-of-control wildfire in the area has triggered a state of local emergency.
As of early Sunday morning, the fire had not crossed the North Saskatchewan River, but one home had been destroyed as the flames spread through the rural farmland that surrounds the provincial park.
