sundre, mountain view county keep fire ban in place
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photos by dwayne leonard show a wildfire near sundre, alta, northwest of calgary, alta.
fire crews are battling the out of control fire on may 15/ 26 and some homes in the region have been evacuated. mandatory credit: courtesy dwayne leonard
dwayne leonard
the mayor of sundre says his town and the surrounding mountain view county remain under a fire ban, even after a neighbouring county lifted its own.
rocky view county downgraded its fire ban to an advisory on sunday.
the ban was issued friday when a wildfire burning about 35 kilometres north in clearwater county was deemed out of control, prompting officials to issue an emergency alert and evacuation orders for the backcountry ahead of the may long weekend.
on monday, a notice shared on the clearwater county website stated the fire is now classified as “being held.”
“alberta wildfire crews and assisting agencies have made strong progress over the last 24 hours, successfully establishing a containment perimeter around the fire,” the notice reads. “ground crews will continue reinforcing the dozer guard and fire lines, while also patrolling and addressing any remaining hotspots.”
an evacuation alert remains in place for the area.
mayor richard warnock said monday there was no threat of evacuation for town residents.
“not this far away,” he said.
he described the skies as “cloudy blue,” with less smoke.
“i think that little bit of moisture kind of knocked it down,” he said of precipitation in the area on the weekend.
warnock said the county will decide tuesday whether to lift the ban.
“for now, it remains in place,” he said.
a fire ban prohibits wood campfires on public land, in campgrounds and on private land, including backyard fire pits. fire permits will be suspended or cancelled, and no new permits will be issued.
residents are not overly concerned, warnock said.
“they know someone is keeping an eye on things and making sure we’re watching for the alerts,” he said.
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