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Page 9
As many as 1,000 firefighters are battling the raging House River fire that ignited from unknown causes on May 17.
It is a fire that has now consumed more than 260,000 hectares (three times the size of Edmonton) located between the town of Lac La Biche and the city of Fort McMurray.
The wildfire, fueled by vast stands of pine and spruce and occasional gusting winds, devoured everything in its path. By press time on June 5, the wildfire, the largest in the province in more than 40 years, had traveled within several kilometres of Conklin, whose 200-plus residents were evacuated on May 27.
Assisting fire fighting efforts are 61 helicopters, four air tankers, 108 bulldozers, and nine water trucks.
Two fingers of the fire are moving in from the west over the north and south regions that border Conklin.
"We anticipate that the area between these two fingers will grow in," said firefighter Patrick Loewen.
The firefighters ringed the community with a triple fireguard with the north flank being at least 30 metres wide. All wood piles and nearby brush have been removed and an elaborate system of more than 200 sprinklers and five-and-a-half kilometres of hose have been strategically placed on top of homes, the school and business structures.
In addition, about 80 firefighters, some of them volunteers, remain in the community and work in shifts to hose down the structures and nearby brush in order to prevent giving the fire a toehold.
Alberta Sustainable Resources information officer Rick Strickland said the fire is "erratic" and unpredictable." This is largely due to the extremely dry conditions coupled with wind gusts.
As of June 5, two additional communities had been put on alert. The Native community of Janvier, located a half-hour's drive north of Conklin with a population of 400, and Chard with 200 people, are threatened.
In the meantime, firefighters and community members pray for much-needed rain. A downpour of two or three days would help immensely, said Loewen.
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