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Calgary Herald
4 days ago
- Climate
- Calgary Herald
Wildfire live updates: Chipewyan Lake confirms 49 per cent structure loss
While Alberta wildfire activity did not escalate dramatically Tuesday night due in part to cooler weather and some precipitation, temperatures across the province are warming up Wednesday and expected to remain hot into the weekend. Crews are preparing for challenging firefighting conditions after a brief reprieve. Article content According to Environment Canada alerts, over 100 communities in the province are under air quality warnings or statements due to wildfire smoke. Article content Article content Article content Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario are also blanketed by wildfire smoke causing poor air quality and warnings from the national weather agency. Article content Article content While Alberta's smoke threat is primarily in the northwestern area of the province, sudden changes in weather could move smoke to other areas quickly. Article content Parts of the U.S. and Europe are also being affected by Canada's wildfire smoke. Article content A fire ban remains in place for northern and central parts of the province's Fire Protection Area, prohibiting wood fires on public or private land. Propane fire pits and barbecues are still allowed. Article content As of Wednesday morning, there were 53 fires burning in the province, with 24 of them classified as out of control. Over 490,000 hectares have burned in Alberta so far in 2025. Article content Article content Municipal District of Opportunity Reeve Marcel Auger and Bigstone Cree Nation Chief Andy Alook addressed Albertans on Tuesday to provide an update on the status of Chipewyan Lake fire damage. Article content Auger and Alook confirmed 38 structures and nine sheds were lost due to the fire in Chipewyan Lake. 10 other buildings were partially damaged. A further 38 structures are confirmed intact.
CTV News
5 days ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Half of Chipewyan Lake destroyed by fire, others return home
A wildfire near Peerless Lake can be seen on June 2, 2025. (Photo: Alberta Wildfire) Some Alberta evacuees headed home Tuesday, while others learned their homes had been destroyed. Bigstone Cree Nation, which includes the communities of Calling Lake, Chipewyan Lake, and Wabasca, said in a Tuesday update that aerial assessments showed 38 structures were destroyed, including the Bigstone Health Centre and the Chipewyan Lake water treatment plant. Nine sheds were also lost and 10 other buildings were partially damaged. 'This means that the community of Chipewyan Lake has experienced a 49 per cent structure loss,' Chief Andy Alook said. Chipewyan Lake June 2 fire Aerial photos show the Bigstone Cree Nation health centre destroyed by fire in Chipewyan Lake on June 2, 2025. (Photo: Facebook/Bigstone Cree Nation) Fire breached the community just hours after it was evacuated due to the Red Earth fire complex, which is made up of at least nine wildfires burning out of control in the Slave Lake Forest Area. Four of those fires collectively cover 2,463 square-kilometres. In addition to Chipewyan Lake, Peerless Lake, Trout Lake, Red Earth Creek and Loon River First Nation were also evacuated. Bigstone Cree Nation said it is working to secure temporary housing for evacuated residents in Wabasca, and will lobby the provincial and federal governments for rebuilding assistance. Wet weather helps some Residents in Peers, Mercoal and Robb were allowed back into their Yellowhead County communities after being forced to flee due to a nearby out-of-control wildfire over 738 hectares in size. 'We are seeing fire behavior in those areas has settled since the precipitation has moved through late last week and early this week,' said Alberta Wildfire information officer Derrick Forsythe. '(Crews) have done a great job in kind of knocking that fire down,' he added, 'and securing the areas that needed to be secured.' Peers resident Irene Vanderwell said it was a relief to be able to go home. '(I'm) very appreciative to the firefighters and everyone who worked to get it out, they did an amazing job,' she added. On Monday, residents living east of the Pembina River in the Hubert Lake Wildfire Provincial Park area were allowed to go home – though an evacuation order remained in place for people west of the river. While rain, colder weather and higher relative humidity had helped temper fire danger in parts of the province, Forsythe said things could heat up quickly again as things start to dry out. 'The big thing to remember is that just because we're not hearing of all kinds of new starts and you're not seeing pictures of big, black plumes or smoke in the sky, doesn't mean that this fight is over by any stretch of the imagination,' Forsythe said. 'If people can be careful and just take every precaution possible to ensure we don't have any new starts, that would be greatly appreciated.' As of Tuesday at 4 p.m., there were 56 active wildfires in Alberta, with 26 of those burning out of control. So far this year, there have been 504 wildfires and more than 490,000 hectares have burned. Fire crews from New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, the Yukon, British Columbia, Quebec and the U.S. were in Alberta helping local firefighters, with more than 1,000 personnel working on fires across the province. June 2 Alberta Wildfire briefing Alberta Wildfire crews were joined by supporting firefighters from the Yukon and the U.S. states of Oregon and Idaho for a briefing on June 2, 2025. (Photo: Alberta Wildfire) Forsythe said conditions remained very dry in the boreal forest from the Edson area up to the Northwest Territories. Areas that did see rain were also starting to dry out, which he said could see a resurgence of fire activity. 'If a new start grabs hold, it can spread pretty quickly,' Forsyth said, pointing to a fire that started Monday night near Highway 25 north of Manning and grew to 1,065 hectares by noon. Fire bans remained in effect in the High Level, Fort McMurray, Peace River, Grande Prairie, Slave Lake, Lac la Biche, Whitecourt and Edson forest areas. Other wildfires of note In addition to the Red Earth fire complex, Forsythe said the Swan fire complex and the Sousa Creek fire had been designated priority fires by the province. The Sousa Creek wildfire is burning out of control over 32,935 hectares between the towns of Rainbow Lake and High Level, along both sides of Highway 58. Evacuation orders were issued for Chateh, Loon Lake, Peerless Lake and Trout Lake. The Swan fire complex is made up of two fires: the Edith Lake wildfire burning over 17,148 hectares north of Swan Hills and the Hubert Lake wildfire burning over 2,855 hectares west of Fawcett. Evacuation orders remained in place for Swan Hills in Westlock county for residents of the provincial park area of the west side of the Pembina river. As of Monday, the province reported about 4,625 Albertans had been forced to leave home due to fires. Others remained at home on alert. For all active evacuation orders and emergency alerts, visit the Alberta Emergency Alert website.
CTV News
6 days ago
- Climate
- CTV News
More than 4,000 Albertans forced to flee fires, critical infrastructure believed destroyed in northern Alberta
The Edith Lake wildfire (SWF076) north of Swan Hills on May 29, 2025. (Source: Alberta Wildfire) At least two-dozen structures are believed to have been destroyed by wildfire in northern Alberta, the chief of one of the evacuated communities says. Chief Andy Alook of Bigstone Cree Nation, which sits more than 300 kilometres north of Edmonton, announced the news to his members in a video posted to social media on Sunday. 'Based on pictures shared by the firefighters that were in the community, we believe we have lost 27 structures, including the senior centre, the water treatment plant, the church and the Bigstone Health Centre,' he said. Alook said the information was based on the final assessment done by firefighters before they left the area on Thursday. Wildfire breached Chipewyan Lake around 8 p.m., just three hours after the community was evacuated. 'Please keep in mind this is not a boots-on-the-ground assessment yet, an aerial assessment team was in Chipewyan Lake and will have a preliminary report along with photos for us [Monday.]' Alook added fire was so intense it destroyed fire protection hoses and equipment. Chipewyan Lake is part of the Slave Lake forest area, which contains nearly half of the out-of-control wildfires in Alberta. Several of the communities in the area have been evacuated, and the province says wildfire damage remains high. Rain over the weekend wasn't enough to help and warm temperatures are expected to evaporate any surface moisture quickly. Yellowhead County evacuations Closer to Edmonton, residents in three communities in Yellowhead County will be able to return home on Tuesday starting at noon. Wade Williams, the county's mayor, says firefighters managed to stop a fire burning near the hamlet of Peers at the railroad tracks at the edge of the hamlet. 'I don't know if people realize how close we came to losing the entire hamlet of Peers, but had the system we had in place not been in place, that hamlet was in huge trouble,' Williams said. Residents of Peers, as well as Robb and Mercoal, are being told to expect to see firefighting equipment still in the area when they return home later this week. 'We are not out of this as of yet, but we have some breathing room for the moment. Crews will continue working these active fires for days to come, until they are completely out. 'The fire hazard is high and the potential for new starts is high. Everyone in the county should have an evacuation plan,' Williams said. Swan Hills fire Meanwhile, residents of Swan Lake, Alta., can now apply for emergency evacuation payments from the province. The wildfire threatening the town is still burning out of control and firefighters are working to protect structures in the community. Additional firefighting resources from Yukon and the United States are on route to help fight the fire. The province says as of Monday, about 4,625 Albertans have been forced out of their homes due to wildfires. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nicole Lampa
