They lost their home to a wildfire. Now they are helping neighbours protect their own

Wallis Snowdon · CBC News

· Posted: May 07, 2025 5:25 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

Shantelle Williams volition ne'er hide the crackle of flames arsenic an inferno engulfed her household farm northeast of Edmonton. 

She besides can't hide the faces of those who came to assistance her household that night.

Williams mislaid her location and household concern successful Sturgeon County connected Saturday nighttime arsenic a occurrence dispersed from the Redwater Provincial Recreation Area to wood and farmland. 

The occurrence that destroyed Williams's farmstead has continued to pain retired of control, triggering evacuation orders and incinerating much than 2,000 hectares. 

'Kept pushing on'

All was calm erstwhile Williams and her husband, Cole Williams, and their 3 young children went retired Saturday evening for a nighttime of bowling.

Plumes of fume disposable supra their spot and a panicked telephone from a neighbour hours aboriginal brought them home. 

Williams and her hubby were greeted by an inferno — flying embers and hissing flames metres distant from their house.

"The dependable of that occurrence coming done those trees, you could conscionable consciousness it," she told CBC News successful an interrogation Wednesday.

"And the heat, your rima was dry. 

"The fume had conscionable travel in, it had gone from bluish skies to acheronian orange. It wasn't a bully sign." 

Within 13 minutes, their location was ablaze.

The barns and outbuildings that made up their household business, a cow-calf operation, were destroyed. 

Williams rushed to get her livestock, including a herd of much than 150 cattle, and household pets to safety. 

"We didn't adjacent person clip to deliberation astir it," she said. "I couldn't look astatine it due to the fact that I consciousness similar I would person conscionable breached down. I conscionable kept pushing on." 

As the flames spread, they opened the gates to their pens and, with the assistance of neighbours and strangers, corralled the animals distant from danger.

Williams said her memories of the night feel surreal.

She moved done the orangish dusk that cloaked her fields arsenic the cows grew spooked and confused successful the smoke, immoderate moving wildly backmost toward the flames. 

"We opened the gates and fto our cattle conscionable spell and effort to determination them arsenic accelerated arsenic we could," she said. 

"By the clip we got them to our different corrals, the writer astir them was connected fire, truthful we had to conscionable unfastened the gates and fto them go."

Williams said radical that came to assistance her family, including a antheral who happened to beryllium driving by and spotted the flames, formed a "human corral" astir the herd until much assistance could arrive. 

Little remains of their property except charred foundations and metallic remnants twisted by the heat. Their historical barn, galore outbuildings, on with each of their broiler chickens and laying hens were lost.  

Some of their cattle were killed but they're inactive assessing their losses.

Williams, 29, said she is astir devastated by the nonaccomplishment of irreplaceable heirlooms, including Williams' engagement ring, her mother's engagement ringing and historical rifles that had been passed down done 3 generations of household astatine the homestead.

The enactment of her assemblage has kept her going. A grassroots fundraiser is collecting donations for their workplace and countless neighbours person offered help. She said her brag has fixed up his location temporarily truthful they person a spot to stay. 

In the days since they watched their location burn, Williams and her hubby person been helping different residents successful the way of the occurrence relocate their livestock, offering assistance transporting horses and cows to anyone successful need. 

Williams said the tight-knit community, wherever "everyone knows everyone", person been leaning connected each different done the crisis. 

"Everybody has conscionable united," Williams said. 

"And that's wherefore we person to assistance wherever we can. You know, they did it each for america and we're going to bash it for them." 

As precocious winds fanned the flames burning crossed the state Tuesday, Williams and her husband spent the nighttime helping their neighbours unafraid livestock. 

Conditions were truthful utmost Tuesday night, the flames breached occurrence guards and sent crews into retreat. 

The occurrence was again connected their doorstep and threatening their neighbour's home.

"It's been insane," she said. 

"They've had sprinklers going for the past 3 days trying to prevention his location and they've been putting retired blistery spots betwixt our properties. And past past night, the winds deed and it conscionable took off." 

Williams said her household volition rebuild, but she's anxious astir however she mightiness support her location from aboriginal occurrence threats. 

As parched, windy conditions persist crossed her location county, she fears her assemblage volition look further damage.

"I'm praying," she said.

"Homes tin beryllium rebuilt, but radical can't."