Fire crews extinguish large blaze at fish farm northwest of Lethbridge

A fire northwest of Lethbridge has left a devastating mark on a farming operation, according to its owners.

Flames broke out Monday afternoon, with smoke from the inferno visible for kilometres.

“The fire was intense when we got here,” said Deputy Fire Chief Kelly Starling on Tuesday. “We were forced to stay out and do an offensive attack — lots of efforts put on the surrounding area.”

The fire broke out at Current Prairie Fisherman Corp., a fish farm with multiple structures in the vicinity.

To put out the massive fire, it took a collaborative effort by many in the region.

“We had multiple departments on scene,” Starling said. “We had crews from Willow Creek and Lethbridge County on scene. It took about 10 hours of firefighting efforts to get it out with 45 to 50 firefighters on scene along with multiple [pieces of] equipment.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We had multiple departments on scene," Starling said. "We had crews from Willow Creek and Lethbridge County on scene. It took about 10 hours of firefighting efforts to get it out with 45 to 50 firefighters on scene along with multiple [pieces of] equipment."

Officials said farm staff were on scene when the fire broke out, but nobody was injured.

“The fire is under investigation. We’re at the initial phase of it. We’re not suspecting anything criminal at this time,” Starling said.

“Crews and volunteers did a great job of holding it to those buildings until we arrived on scene,” Starling added. “I’d like to take the time to thank everybody that came out to help: neighbours, volunteers, everybody around.”

The cause of the fire is being investigated by multiple agencies.