More details have come in on the fire burning at the Altona/Rhineland landfill.
In an update from Fire Chief Greg Zimmerman, crews were first called to the site north of town around 4 p.m. yesterday where they found a fire burning on the south side of the waste disposal site.
Then, around 8 p.m., fire fighters returned to the landfill, where a fire was burning in a spot behind the original fire, and remained on scene until about 3 a.m.
According to a social media post, crews with the Winkler Fire Department were called in to lend a hand shortly after 11 p.m.
Altona/Rhineland Emergency Services crews were called back to the site for a third time at about 8 o'clock this morning, and Zimmerman says this time, the fire was on the northwest side of the landfill with flames stretching onto a nearby berm and starting a grass fire. As of 10 a.m., fire fighters were still on scene.
There's no word on what's caused these fires.
Meantime, with the dry, windy conditions as of late, Zimmerman is asking that we refrain from burning at this time. He says fires shouldn't be lit in winds higher than 30 km/h. Click here to view your Petro Canada Winkler weather.
