Potential for a busy fire season in southern Alberta, says wildfire expert
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The Bow Valley or Kananaskis Country is overdue for a big fire at some point, he said.
'I'm not saying it's going to be this year, but I'm saying it's been primed for some time and one of these days we are going to see a big fire in that corridor,' said Flannigan.
In the spring, southern Alberta tends to get plenty of grassfires, but fire season in the south usually peaks in the summer, said Flannigan. In 2017, the Kenow fire in Waterton began in September and last year's Jasper fire started in July.
Across Alberta, indicators suggest it could potentially be an active season, said Flannigan.
Flannigan advised Albertans to observe fire bans and other advisories, and follow common-sense FireSmart principles, such as keeping no flammable materials within 1.5 metres of a home or structure.
'That's really important, because fire typically enters a community through embers. The fire generates these billions, trillions of embers, the wind carries them, they land on something flammable beside your home, it catches fire and then they catch your house on fire.'
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