Grass fire whipped by wind killed four at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright
The fire, which started as a smouldering grass fire, engulfed soldiers at a firing range during high winds.
EDMONTON — A grass fire whipped by high winds into a wall of flames killed at least four people and seriously injured dozens during a training exercise at a Canadian military base in Alberta.
The fire engulfed Canadian Armed Forces members at a firing range at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright on Saturday afternoon, The Globe and Mail reported, citing internal military communications.
The Canadian government confirmed four deaths on Sunday but has not publicly commented on the cause.
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Prime Minister Mark Carney called the fire one of the worst peacetime tragedies ever for Canada’s armed forces on home soil.
“The nation is in mourning for those brave members of our armed forces whom we have lost,” Carney said.
He said he had ordered flags on federal buildings across the country to be lowered to half-mast.
CBC News previously reported seven deaths at the base, citing unnamed sources. Authorities said they would not confirm casualty figures until next of kin have been notified.
Internal military communications indicate the fire “very seriously” injured 31 people, The Globe and Mail reported.
The fire took place about 4 p.m. on Saturday in a training area as winds gusted up to 96 km/h.
Soldiers and reservists at the base were preparing for a deployment to Latvia, the paper said.
Military and civilian firefighters fought the fire through the night in “some of the worst conditions imaginable”, Carney said.
Air ambulances from Edmonton and Saskatoon flew to the military base on Saturday. Patients are being treated in Edmonton, Wainwright, Calgary and Red Deer.
Health staff in Edmonton said a “code orange”, or mass-casualty event, was declared to co-ordinate the medical response for patients being transported from Wainwright, CBC News reported.
The town of Wainwright, with a population of about 6600, is just north of the base. The municipality posted on social media that the fire had crossed the base fence into the nearby district, but no evacuation orders had been issued.
It said on Sunday that the fire was not expected to spread beyond its current boundaries.
CFB Wainwright had 1310 military and civilian personnel stationed there as of 2021, according to census data. The base, one of Canada’s largest, is about 210 kilometres east of Edmonton.
National Defence Minister David McGuinty said on Sunday he would go to Edmonton for briefings on the situation.
The base houses the Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre, which runs training scenarios and exercises for the army. Carney said those affected in Saturday’s fire came from military bases across the country.
Canadian officials are expected to address the public from Wainwright later on Monday.
With files from The Age