Updates on fires within Wood Buffalo National Park will be released Tuesdays, on a weekly basis, unless the situation changes.

There are currently 8 confirmed fires within Wood Buffalo National Park.

There are 25 personnel and three helicopters responding to fires in the park today, including a Parks Canada Incident Management Team. Tomorrow, a fourth helicopter will be added to the response.

New fires since the last update:

Fire 8 (2024WB8) – Peace Point Fire:

Last night, while Parks Canada was actioning wildfires in the southwestern region of Wood Buffalo National Park, personnel detected a suspected human-caused fire in the backyard of a Peace Point residence that quickly spread to a nearby structure and surrounding forest.

Parks Canada fire crews actioned the fire immediately. Three helicopters and three fire crews responded and worked until last light. Today, two fire crews and two helicopters returned to the area in the morning to continue suppression efforts, focusing primarily on limiting spread of the fire to the east.

An initial field assessment identified the fire at 10 hectares. At this time, the fire has not spread to the Pine Lake Road-Carlson’s Road intersection and is contained within the Peace Point Mikisew Cree First Nation reserve area.

Values at Carlson’s Landing and Moose Island are not at risk at this time, based on observed fire behaviour and predicted weather conditions. The work we are doing to supress this fire is focused on reducing any potential for growth.

Wood Buffalo National Park remains in an extreme drought. There is a recreational fire ban in place for the entire park. If you’re out on-the-land, please be careful with cigarette butts and other things that may start wildfires. It is very dry out there – wildfires can put on significant growth in minutes under these conditions.

Fire 7 (2024WB7): This fire was discovered on May 8 and was actioned by one fire crew and a helicopter immediately upon discovery. Fire 7 was a holdover fire, located approximately 10 km west of Fire 2, along the perimeter of last season’s Davidson Lake Fires. Fire 7 is now classified as extinguished.

Other confirmed fires:

Fire 2 (2024WB2) is a holdover fire from 2024’s Davidson Lake Fires and was last estimated at 95 hectares. This fire is now classified as under control. It is approximately 40 km east of Garden River in the southwestern region of the park, next to Big Slough, along the Peace River. Fire crews have been working on-the-ground since April 29 to extinguish the current perimeter 100-ft in. They are making good progress, but hot spots in this area are burning deep underground – crews have been extinguishing some that are 4-5 feet deep. Spots this deep take longer to put out as they require hard, focused work and much more effort than wildfires burning in normal conditions.

Fire 3 (2024WB3) is now estimated at 3,800 hectares and is located approximately 10 km from the southern shoreline of Isidore Lake, in the southwestern area of the park. This fire has grown because of extreme wind conditions over the last two days. It is a holdover fire from last year’s Davidson Lake Fires. Fire specialists continue to look at strategic containment options for further response. Firefighters will continue running structural protection on values at risk in the area.

Fire 4, 5 & 6: These three overwinter hot spots were discovered during NWT Fire’s infrared scanning flights. They are located along the northern perimeter of last year’s Wood Buffalo Complex wildfire and were actioned in partnership with NWT Fire. These three fires are now classified as Under Control.

Fire 1 (2024WB1): This holdover fire was spotted in February in the Lane Lakes area of the park during an aerial bison survey. It is well within the perimeter of last year’s Pine Lake Fires and causes no risk to any communities or values.

The drought conditions that spanned most of last summer carried over winter and remain in this area. It is especially important to report suspicious smoke or wildfires if you see them while travelling in the park. Call the Wood Buffalo National Park Fire Duty Officer at 867-621-0136.

Get up-to-date information on wildfires in Wood Buffalo National Park at our website here.

Closures and Fire Bans

A recreational fire ban is in place for all visitor facilities in Wood Buffalo National Park. This includes all day-use areas and Pine Lake Campground.

There are many closures within Wood Buffalo National Park that remain in place. This includes, Parsons Lake Road, Salt Plains Day Use Area and ALL recreational trails in the park. This is due to remaining public safety risk and hazardous debris. For up-to-date information on closures within the park, please visit our website here: https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/nt/woodbuffalo/securite_safety/bulletins

Weather Forecast

Strong, gusty winds remain in the area through today, but will be decreasing in the coming days. Temperatures are expected to be slightly cooler than the past week, with the forecast showing mid-teen daytime highs. Environment and Climate Change Canada weather forecasts can be found here:

• Fort Chipewyan
• Fort Smith

For further information, contact:

Alyssa Etsell
Fire Information Officer – Wood Buffalo National Park
867-621-0764
wbnpfire-feupnwb@pc.gc.ca

Report wildfires or suspicious smoke to the Fire Duty Officer at 867-621-0136.

Updates on fires within Wood Buffalo National Park will be released on an as-needed basis, until the situation changes.

There are currently 6 confirmed fires within Wood Buffalo National Park. No communities are currently at risk.

Additional resources were requested last week to assist Wood Buffalo National Park in responding to current wildfires on the landscape. A Parks Canada Incident Management Team has been requested and will be arriving on Thursday May 9th.

Seven 4-person crews and three helicopters are currently responding to fires in the park.

Fire 2 (2024WB2): This holdover fire is in the southwestern region of the park, next to Big Slough and along the Peace River. It is approximately 40 km east of Garden River. It is a holdover fire from last year’s Davidson Lake Fires and was initially identified using MODIS, a satellite heat detection system, on Monday April 22. The next day, a fire specialist flew over the area in a fixed-wing plane to confirm the MODIS heat signatures as a holdover fire.

After confirming this fire, fire specialists were able to secure a helicopter to begin actioning the fire. The helicopter and fire crew members were sent to action the fire as soon as possible.

Since April 29, an additional helicopter has been added to the response. Over the weekend (May 4-6), this fire was being actioned by three fire crews and two helicopters. Yesterday, five fire crews and two helicopters contributed to firefighting efforts. A third helicopter is arriving today and will assist with initial attack response and actioning fires within the park.

Fire 3 (2024WB3): This holdover fire is also located in the southwestern region of the park, approximately 10 km from the southern edge of Isidore Lake. It is a holdover fire from last year’s Davidson Lake Fires and was initially identified on Monday April 22 using MODIS. Fire personnel are looking at strategic containment options for this fire. Structure protection, which are systems of sprinklers, hose and water pumps set up to bring up the moisture levels around values at risk, was deployed yesterday (May 6, 2024) on values in the area.

Fire 4, 5 & 6: These three overwinter hot spots were discovered during NWT Fire’s infrared scanning flights. They are located along the northern perimeter of last year’s Wood Buffalo Complex wildfire and are currently being actioned in partnership with NWT Fire. There is currently no risk to any values or communities.

Fire 1 (2024WB1): This holdover fire was spotted in February in the Lane Lakes area of the park during an aerial bison survey. It is well within the perimeter of last year’s Pine Lake Fires and causes no risk to any communities or values.

You may see smoke in other areas of the park, well within the perimeters of a fire from last year. Cameras are set up on top of both Parsons and Raven Tower, facing toward the Town of Fort Smith. These cameras send images several times per day to fire specialists, who check the photos for signs of smoke. Last week, some smoke was detected via these images. Fire personnel used a helicopter to assess the smokes and observed the smoke was coming from very small patches of unburned fuel (trees, logs, leaves, etc.), well within the perimeter of the Wood Buffalo Complex wildfire from last season, surrounded by previously burned areas.

The drought conditions of last summer carried over winter and persist in this area. It is especially important to report suspicious smoke or wildfires if you see them while travelling in the park. Call the Wood Buffalo National Park Fire Duty Officer at 867-621-0136.

Closures and Fire Bans

A recreational fire ban is in place for all visitor facilities in Wood Buffalo National Park. This includes all day-use areas and Pine Lake Campground.

There are many closures within Wood Buffalo National Park that remain in place. This includes, Parsons Lake Road, Salt Plains Day Use Area and ALL recreational trails in the park. This is due to remaining public safety risks and hazardous debris. For up-to-date information on closures within the park, please visit our website here:

https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/nt/woodbuffalo/securite_safety/bulletins

Weather Forecast

The temperature this week in Wood Buffalo National Park is forecasted to be in the high teens, with some possible precipitation. Environment and Climate Change Canada weather forecasts can be found here:

• Fort Chipewyan
• Fort Smith

Air Quality

Wildfire smoke will become increasingly common in the air as the wildfire season progresses and may cause older residents and people with pre-existing conditions health concerns. The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a scale from 1 to 10+ designed to help you understand what the air quality around you means to your health. The higher the number, the greater the health risk associated with the air quality.

For information on air quality and risks to health, please visit this page:

https://www.canada.ca/en/services/health/healthy-living/environment/air-quality/wildfire-smoke.html#a1

Current wildfire smoke forecasts can be found here:

For further information, contact:

Alyssa Etsell
Fire Information Officer – Wood Buffalo National Park
867-621-0764
wbnpfire-feupnwb@pc.gc.ca

Report wildfires or suspicious smoke to the Fire Duty Officer at 867-621-0136.