Athabasca County declared a fire restriction May 13 after a grassfire the day before burnt through five hectares off of Highway 827 northeast of Colinton.
County emergency services director Ron Jackson, who was at the scene of the Mother’s Day fire, said in a later interview that the call came in around 1:30 p.m.
“It started in the roadside, in the right-of-way, and because of the wind it spread quite quickly across a little bit of open field and then into the heavy timber, the spruce-poplar timber block,” he said.
He said the blaze was declared as held by about 6 p.m. No structures were ever at risk, he noted, and while it was “not an innocuous fire,” it started out the spring season.
“Not real intense — nobody got hurt, nobody’s house got burnt,” he said, adding that the cause of the blaze is hard to determine.
“Whether it was a seized bearing on a trailer that went by — I couldn’t say whether it’s malicious or not,” he said. “There’s no indication that somebody intentionally started it, so it could have been anything in the roadside.”
Jackson also said the Colinton Fire Department was the initial responder, and they had the help of mutual aid partners from the province’s Agriculture and Forestry department sent a dozer group to put a guard around the fire, and contract water trucks attended as well.
The Athabasca Fire Department was doing training at the time, and shut down early to help extinguish the fire.
“They were all ready and raring to go,” he said.
“(May 13) we have just some mop out resources out there, putting out any hot spots,” he said.
Town advisory
The hot, dry weather also led the Town of Athabasca to issue a fire advisory May 10.
In a press release, the town stated it issued the advisory due to current weather conditions and a forecasted wildfire risk.
“There is no open burning within town limits,” the release states.
“The fire advisory will remain in effect until conditions improve.”
Athabasca County has been under a fire advisory since April 23.
The town release also warned against burning permitted fires when winds exceed 15 km/h.
It notes that internal household fire places, solid fuel barbecues using charcoal briquettes, bylaw compliant backyard and camping fires and portable propane fire pits and appliances are still allowed.
Lac La Biche Forest Area
The Lac La Biche Forest Area — which includes the northern part of Athabasca County and stretches from just west of Flatbush to the Saskatchewan border — also issued a fire advisory May 10.
“We had two new wildfires today,” stated wildfire information officer Leslie Lozinski in a post on the government’s website. “Despite the winds, both wildfires were kept small due to the quick action of our firefighters, land owners and local fire departments.”
In a May 13 post, she also stated there have been 86 wildfires in the Lac La Biche Forest Area this wildfire season.
“We have 12 crews, the airtankers, five helicopters, two dozer groups, water trucks and other equipment ready to fight wildfires tomorrow,” she added.
Lozinski also states than any fire other than a campfire requires a permit, which can be obtained for fire by calling the Lac La Biche Fire Center at 780-623-5388.
She also stated people should check that their winter burns have been extinguished and warned that off-highway vehicles can start wildfires.
“Check frequently to ensure hotspots are free of debris, and make sure mufflers and spark arrestors are working properly,” Lozinski stated.
The advisory was still in effect as of May 14.
— With files from Will Gordon
