Foothills firefighters say poplar fluff is believed to be a contributing factor to Tuesday’s grass fire near De Winton.
Both the Okotoks Fire Department and the Foothills Fire Department responded to the blaze along 56 Street E. at around 4 p.m.
Foothills Fire Chief Jim Smith said a family was having an outdoor fire on their property when some poplar fluff caught fire.
“The poplar fuzz is really, really flammable,” Smith said. “They couldn’t get the fire under control so they ended up calling 911.”
Firefighters were on scene until 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday, putting the fire out.
Smith said so far this year, they’ve had about half the number of grass fires they usually see, but firefighters aren’t letting their guard down.
“We’re moving towards a really, really dry season,” he said.
“It looks like we’re going to have a very hot and dry summer which equates to a very busy fire season.”
In southern Alberta, a number of fire advisories are already in place. On Wednesday, the province added further fire restrictions in parts of northern Alberta.
“The fire restriction will restrict anything outside a campfire within a campground,” Alberta Wildfire Information Officer, Travis Fairweather said of new restrictions being put in place in some areas.
For more information on fire bans, restrictions and advisories in Alberta, click here.