By Taylor MacPherson

Fire crews battle West Flat grass fire

Apr 27, 2017 | 8:30 PM

A grass fire in the West Flat appeared to threaten Wesmor Community High School this evening before Prince Albert firefighters got the blaze under control.

Battalion Chief Kris Olsen said firefighters were called to the west part of the city shortly after 7 p.m. April 27, coincidentally while another fire crew was out performing a controlled grass burn in the Crescent Acres area.

When fire crews arrived at the field southeast of Wesmor School, Olsen said the firefighters quickly positioned themselves to prevent the fire from spreading further.

“They made a decision to flank it right away,” Olesen told paNOW. “Their main objective was to keep it out of the heavy fuels; out of the bush.”

Although the fire looked quite sizable and sent a plume of smoke high into the evening sky, Olsen said firefighters did not have much difficulty containing it due to some favourable weather conditions.

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“Humidity is quite high, temperature’s low, there weren’t any severe winds today to deal with,” Olsen said. “It didn’t get into any structures and it didn’t get into anybody’s personal property.”

The cause of the fire is still not known.

Olsen emphasized that environmental conditions can change rapidly and grass fires are a risk throughout much of the year. Prince Albert’s fire department performs a series of controlled burns throughout the season to help minimize risks, Olsen said, and noted a large burn is scheduled to take place in Little Red River Park tomorrow at 9 a.m.

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews