Update 4: Northwest Alberta wildfire (May 24 at 5:00 p.m.)

Lloyd Lewis

Published

6 years ago

8 minute read

May 24, 2019

From Government of Alberta:

Nearly 400 firefighters, 28 helicopters and eight air tankers continue to battle northwest Alberta wildfires. Evacuees can sign up for financial support Sunday.

Current situation

The Chuckegg Creek Wildfire is burning approximately three kilometres southwest of the Town of High Level in Mackenzie County.
This out-of-control wildfire has grown to almost 100,000 hectares.
Resources on the ground include about 261 wildland firefighters, 154 structural fighters and staff on the ground, supported by 28 helicopters, eight air tankers and 46 pieces of heavy equipment.
Continuing dry and windy conditions in most of Alberta have increased the danger of forest fires.
Evacuation centres have registered approximately 3,700 people as of May 24 at 2 p.m.
A voluntary evacuation is in place for Paddle Prairie Metis Settlement and areas north of High Level.
The province will provide one-time financial support to evacuees displaced by northwest wildfires.
You may qualify for the evacuation payment if you were:
- living, working or vacationing in the affected area
- forced to leave due to an evacuation order
- paid for most of your costs to evacuate
Albertans who qualify will receive $1,250 for each adult and $500 for each dependent child.
Applications will open:
- Online – starting Sunday, May 26 (Interac e-transfers may take 24 hours to go through)
- In person at evacuation reception centres – starting Monday, May 27
- If you require assistance registering, call 310-4455
Alberta Health Services evacuated 19 patients from the Manning Community Health Centre due to smoke from the wildfires.
Detailed information is available on emergency.alberta.ca, which is updated frequently.
Alberta Emergency Alerts has cancelled the High Level and Bushe River Reserve emergency alerts and have consolidated them into a larger Mackenzie County alert.

Reception centres

Reception centres are open at:
- Slave Lake Legacy Centre (400 6 Avenue)
- High Prairie Gordon Buchanan Centre (5409 49 Street)
- Grande Prairie Regional College (10726 106 Avenue)
- Peace River Misery Mountain Ski Hill (10408 89 Street)
- La Crete Heritage Centre (25411 Township Road 1060, south of La Crete)
- Fort Vermilion Community Cultural Complex (5001 44 Avenue)
- Hay River Dene Wellness Centre (In K’atl’ Odeeche First Nation, 17 kilometres east of Hay River)

Highway closures

Highway 35 remains closed between five kilometres and 30 kilometres south of High Level. Highway 697 and the La Crete Ferry is identified as a detour. La Crete Ferry is operational with wait times of approximately one hour.
Highway 58 from High Level to approximately 70 kilometres from the junction with Range Road 45A remains closed.

Insurance information

Evacuated residents should retain all their receipts for food purchases, accommodation and other related expenses to provide to their insurer for possible reimbursement.
Most home and tenant’s insurance policies provide reasonable coverage for living expenses during an evacuation. Contact your insurance company for details.
Albertans who cannot remember or reach their insurance provider, can contact the Insurance Bureau of Canada at 1-844-227-5422 or by email at [email protected]. Information to understand your fire insurance coverage is online at www.ibc.ca/ab/disaster/alberta-wildfire.

Air quality

Alberta Health Services has issued a special air quality statement.
Alberta Wildfire recommends checking FireSmoke.ca to find out where the smoke is coming from.

Health

Mental health support is available by calling Alberta’s 24-hour Mental Health Help Line at 1-877-303-2642.

Pets and livestock

Animal Control are collecting household pets that have been left behind. Pets will be moved to a safe and secure location outside of the Town of High Level. If you have left your household pet behind, please contact 780-926-2201.
Mackenzie County has stock trailers to assist with livestock. transport. Visit www.highlevel.ca for more information.

Donations and volunteers

The towns of High Level and Slave Lake are not accepting material donations and do not require volunteers at this time.
The Town of Slave Lake has set up an online form for offers http://www.slavelake.ca/FormCenter/Other-27/High-Level-Evacuation-Volunteer-Sign-Up-159.
Check the Mackenzie County Facebook page for an up-to-date list of donations needed and drop-off locations.

Canada Post

Canada Post has suspended mail delivery services in the communities of High Level, Paddle Prairie Metis Settlement, Meander River, Chateh and Keg River.
Mail will be held at the Edmonton depot until mail service resumes.
Check the Canada Post website for updates.

Income Support, Alberta Supports and AISH

Residents receiving benefits from the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) or the Income Support program by cheque rather than electronic deposit, and who are affected by the wildfire in High Level, can visit their nearest Alberta Supports Centres Alberta Supports [www.alberta.ca/alberta-supports.aspx] to pick up their cheque.
If you are in La Crete, you can pick up your cheque at the local reception centre. If you receive your benefits via direct deposit, your payment will be deposited as usual.
For information on child intervention and child care, residents may contact 1-800-638-0715.
If persons with developmental disabilities, their families or contracted service providers need human, financial, or in-kind assistance to connect with loved ones, find accommodations or provide assistance to individuals receiving PDD supports, please contact the nearest Alberta Supports Centre for assistance. You can find a list of Alberta Supports Centres online Alberta Supports www.alberta.ca/alberta-supports.aspx or you can call the Alberta Supports contact Centre at 1-800-232-7215 provincewide between 7:30 a.m. and 8 p.m., Monday to Friday.
For additional information on social benefits, affected individuals can contact Alberta Supports at www.alberta.ca/alberta-supports.aspx or call 1-877-644-9992, Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Health card, driver’s licences, ID cards, birth certificate

To get a replacement Health Care Insurance Card at no cost, you can contact 780-427-1432 or toll free at 310-0000 and then 780-427-1432 when prompted. Your Alberta Personal Health Card can be mailed to a temporary address.
If driver’s licences, ID cards, and/or birth certificates were left behind during the evacuation, replacement cards and certificates can be ordered free of charge at a registry agent. A list of registry locations can be found at https://www.alberta.ca/registry-agents.aspx

Other information

Residents driving through the area should carry enough fuel as there may be shortages.

Public information

You can call 310-4455 for more information.

President Todayville Inc., Honorary Colonel 41 Signal Regiment, Board Member Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts Award Foundation, Director Canadian Forces Liaison Council (Alberta) musician, photographer, former VP/GM CTV Edmonton.

Follow Author

41 Signal Regiment trains for winter survival at CFB Wainwright

Central Alberta / 2 years ago

Local artist records original song for Remembrance Day with video showcasing Red Deer’s military history

Community / 2 years ago

Glenn Anderson adds some colour to the “Day of Golf”

Alberta

Is There Any Canadian Province More Proud of their Premier Today…

Published on January 21, 2025

Todayville

Prior to Trumps inauguration event and announcement was made that Trump would not be imposing the 25% tariffs…

Which means, Canada seriously dodged a bullet here.

And while the Liberals will most likely frame this as, their success in showing, Bad Orange Man, that they’re tough and ready to burn down what is left of our economy, throwing Alberta under the bus, first…through a nuclear option…

Premier Smith rode this challenge out like the true champion we knew that she would be.

It’s hard to say if this was a legality matter in the grander scheme…or if the 25% tariffs would have truly been as big of an impact on the US…

One thing is clear, however…

Smith was ready to go to the tables with the Trump administration and opt for diplomacy over threats…which should be what we expect from our leaders.

And should these 25% tariffs have gone through…I’m more than sure a Plan B would have been brought out in civil conversations, over screeching rhetoric.

“She’s treasonous”, they screeched.

“She’s supporting her friends in Oil and Gas”, they relent.

“She should put Canada first”, they echo…

And let’s just address these…

Is Walmart beholden to Campbells soup? Fruit of the Loom? Kraft?

Or does Walmart sell products that helps keep their doors open?

Walmart is not beholden to any product…just like Premier Smith isn’t. We have 26% of our GDP – the largest portion – owed to Alberta O&G, something that we have a limited trade partner with, due to the Liberal – Anti-Alberta/Anti-O&G/Anti-Pipeline attitude that wants to spend us further in debt with unreliable and expensive “Renewables”.

What does Alberta get from renewables?

A higher cost for energy, in an affordability crisis, created by the same people who continue to push them…sounds like a terrible deal, for Albertans, and something a true leader would Not Favor.

When Walmart sits down to hash out a deal with Heinz, are they committing treason because they haven’t shown their allegiance to their own, ‘Great Value’ brand Ketchup?

No…other provinces have their own industries and resources, which they are free to continue developing independent of the federal government, as is suitable and supportive of their own economies…Alberta isn’t competing with them, nor Canada as a whole.

Alberta through industry and resource, actually supports Canada through a grand imbalance on “Equalization Payments”…

As do we through paying 50% more into the Canada Pension Plan, than we actually get out of the Canada Pension Plan…to the tune of a $334 Billion Dollars.

And as for this “Team Canada”, horseshit…

The title Premier of Alberta, should hold some clues as to who Premier Smith should be advocating for…as she is the Premier of Alberta and Not the Prime Minister, nor leader in the Liberal Party that has created this fiasco, to begin with.

Rail, as they may…other provinces can’t cast a vote in her support, either way…

None of the other provinces, through Members of Parliament, nor through Premiers, came to support Alberta and our economy through a number of Federal Bills that railed on our provincial resources…

Worse yet…these hypocrites cash cheques from our province, while telling us how to diversify our economy…to which I’d state one thing unequivocally…

If we wanted to be a Have Not Province…like you are…we’ll come and ask you for your advice.

Until then…

I’ll hold my Alberta Flag Higher than my Canadian…

And be proud today, of having the only Premier in the country of Canada, worthy of any praise today!

Alberta

Trump delays implementation 25% tariffs: Premier Smith response

Published on January 20, 2025

Government of Alberta

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith issued the following statement, welcoming the U.S. tariff reprieve and calling for strategic action:

“Alberta is pleased to see that today President Donald Trump has decided to refrain from imposing tariffs on Canadian goods at this time as they study the issue further.

“We appreciate the implied acknowledgement that this is a complex and delicate issue with serious implications for American and Canadian workers, businesses and consumers given the integration of our markets, along with our critical energy and security partnership.

“Avoiding tariffs will save hundreds of thousands of Canadian and American jobs across every sector. As an example, declining to impose U.S. tariffs on Canadian energy preserves the viability of dozens of U.S. refineries and facilities that upgrade Alberta crude, and the jobs of tens of thousands of Americans employed at them.

“Despite the promising news today, the threat of U.S. tariffs is still very real. As a country, we need to immediately take the following steps to preserve and strengthen our economic and security partnership with the United States, and to avoid the future imposition of tariffs:

Focus on diplomacy and refrain from further talk of retaliatory measures, including export tariffs or cutting off energy to the U.S. Having spoken with the President, as well as dozens of governors, senators, members of congress and allies of the incoming administration, I am convinced that the path to a positive resolution with our U.S. allies is strong and consistent diplomacy and working in good faith towards shared priorities. The worst possible response to today’s news would be the federal government or premiers declaring “victory” or escalating tensions with unnecessary threats against the United States.
Negotiate ways to increase what Canadians and Americans buy from one another. As an example, the United States should look at purchasing more oil, timber and agricultural products from Canada, while Canada should look at purchasing more American gas turbines, military equipment and the computer hardware needed to build our growing AI data centre sector. Finding ways to increase trade in both directions is critical to achieving a win-win for both countries.
Double down on border security. Within the next month, all border provinces should either by themselves, or in partnership with the federal government, deploy the necessary resources to secure our shared border from illegal drugs and migration.
Announce a major acceleration of Canada’s 2 per cent of GDP NATO target. This is clearly a shared priority that benefits both of our nations. There is no excuse for further delay.
Crack down on immigration streams and loopholes that are known to permit individuals hostile to Canada and the United States to enter our country, and restore immigration levels and rules to those under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Immediately repeal all federal anti-energy policies (production cap, Clean Electricity Regulations, Impact Assessment Act [Bill C-69]) and fast track Northern Gateway and Energy East projects pre-approvals.”