Four killed, 19 in critical condition as winds fuel deadly grassfire

A routine training exercise at one of Canada’s biggest military facilities turned deadly after a smouldering grass fire rapidly erupted, killing at least four soldiers and leaving 19 people in critical condition.

Canadian officials said the blaze broke out in a training area at an Alberta military base where personnel were conducting drills.

A total of 39 people were hospitalized following the fire at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, which started around Saturday afternoon, officials said.

Powerful winds — reaching up to 96 km per hour — drove the flames and intensified the emergency.

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Major General Wade Rutland called it an “uncommon, rapid” incident.

“I’ve certainly never seen anything like it,” said Major General Rutland, commander of 1st Canadian Division, based in Edmonton about 210 km west of the military site.

Flags at half mast

Prime Minister Mark Carney said the fire ranked among the worst peacetime tragedies ever suffered by Canada’s armed forces on home soil.

“The nation is in mourning for those brave members of our Armed Forces whom we have lost,” Mr Carney said. He added that he had ordered flags on federal buildings nationwide lowered to half-staff in honour of the victims.

As of 2021, census data shows CFB Wainwright had 1,310 military and civilian personnel stationed there.

Fire fighters were working on the scene on Sunday afternoon

National Defence Minister David McGuinty said he would travel to the city for briefings on the unfolding situation.

The base is home to the Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre, which operates training scenarios and army exercises.

Mr Carney said those affected by Saturday’s fire were drawn from military bases across the country.

Military and civilian firefighters battled the blaze overnight in what Mr Carney described as “some of the worst conditions imaginable.”

Code Orange

Air ambulances from Edmonton and Saskatoon — about 300km from Wainwright — were dispatched to the base on Saturday.

Patients are receiving treatment in Edmonton, Wainwright, Calgary and Red Deer.

Health staff in Edmonton declared a “code orange,” a mass-casualty event used to coordinate the medical response for patients being transported from Wainwright, CBC News reported.

Canadian Forces Base Wainwright is Canada’s largest training facility

The town of Wainwright, population about 6,600, sits just north of the base.

The municipality said on social media that the fire crossed the base fence into the nearby district, though no evacuation orders were issued.

It said yesterday that officials do not expect the fire to spread beyond its current boundaries.