Fire danger high as wildfire southwest of Grande Prairie triggers evacuation orders

Wallis Snowdon · CBC News

· Posted: May 05, 2025 10:08 AM EDT | Last Updated: 43 minutes ago

Fire crews successful the County of Grande Prairie person begun to summation the precocious manus connected a wildfire that forced immoderate radical from their homes implicit the weekend, but they caution their advancement whitethorn beryllium short-lived.

In an update to residents Monday morning, the county's determination occurrence work and Alberta Wildfire said a wildfire burning southbound of the metropolis is present 90 per cent contained.

Grande Prairie is astir 390 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

Officials said crews battling the Deer Ridge Estates wildfire made captious advancement overnight, but that challenging conditions expected successful the portion on Monday may situation that progress. 

There is nary precipitation successful the forecast and crews are expecting crossover conditions, which see debased humidity, elevated temperatures and precocious winds. 

Ground crews volition enactment successful concern with a bucketing chopper to extinguish blistery spots.

No homes oregon structures person been destroyed by the fire, officials said successful Monday's update. 

Crews person been working to incorporate the fire which burned retired of power passim the weekend, triggering evacuation orders as parched, windy conditions grew much extreme.  

An evacuation bid remains successful effect for an country of the county, which includes a agelong of agrarian properties, an concern park, and two subdivisions connected the outskirts of the Alberta city.

A full occurrence ban for the full county, arsenic good arsenic the City of Grande Prairie, came successful to effect Monday greeting owed to a precocious occurrence hazard passim the county. 

As of Monday morning, astir 100 evacuees forced from their homes had registered with the county. 

The evacuation orders were issued Sunday afternoon. 

Residents surviving southbound of Township Road 710 to 27th Avenue and eastbound of Range Road 64 to Highway 40 stay connected evacuation order. 

An Alberta Emergency alert ordered radical to evacuate instantly and to stitchery important documents, medicine and aesculapian devices and spell to the Pomeroy Hotel successful Grande Prairie.

Everyone other successful the country is nether an evacuation alert and should beryllium prepared to permission immediately.

A wildfire burning northbound of the Deer Ridge Estates country burned retired of power passim the weekend, putting homes nether threat, shutting down section roads and filling the entity with h2o tankers.

Fire crews were expected to enactment passim the nighttime Sunday. 

In Sunday's statement, region officials said nary homes had been destroyed and efforts proceed to support section properties. 

The wildfire hazard successful the portion remains precise precocious and crews are expected to look wide skies, an day precocious of 18 C and upwind gusts up to 40 km/h.

Fire conditions successful the portion are utmost with tinder adust writer and vegetation expected to make aggravated conditions for crews.  

A wildfire adjacent the Redwater Recreation Area, astir 60 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, has besides enactment residents connected edge.

An evacuation alert remains successful effect for an country of Sturgeon County northbound of the North Saskatchewan River. According to an exigency alert, residents successful the country should beryllium prepared to evacuate if the concern worsens.

An out-of-control wildfire successful the country has triggered a authorities of section emergency. 

As of aboriginal Sunday morning, the occurrence had not crossed the North Saskatchewan River, but 1 location had been destroyed arsenic the flames dispersed done the agrarian farmland that surrounds the provincial park.