A large grass fire broke out in the Rural Municipality of Stuartburn on Wednesday, April 16.
Fire Chief Harv Nickel says the fire started off the dike, just south of Vita.
“With the strong winds, it came north about three miles, and we were able to stop it on Road 5 North so it couldn't cross there, and it spread east-west approximately about two and a half miles at the widest extent.”
Crews were called shortly after 1 PM and returned to the fire hall around 8:30 PM.
Nickel says they were not able to determine how the fire started.
While grass fires aren’t uncommon in spring for the RM of Stuartburn, this one stands out in size.
“We’ve had a few smaller ones. This would be about the largest one that we've had this spring,” Nickel says. “It's kind of common for this time of the year.”
The fires are a result of the current dry conditions in the area.
“We need some more rain. It's quite dry there,” he says. “And there is a lot of fuel out there from last year. We will need some very timely rains.”
Nickel is reminding residents to be especially careful during this time.
“Be very cautious when they are burning, and in the RM of Stuartburn we do require it to have burn permits. And if anybody is doing any quadding or anything, to be very diligent of your hot exhaust and that you're not all of a sudden igniting something while you're out there.”