Four Canadian soldiers were killed and 39 others injured on Saturday when a grass fire, whipped by extreme winds, swept through a live-fire training exercise at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in Alberta — one of the worst peacetime tragedies in the Canadian Armed Forces' history.
The dead were all members of the Edmonton-based 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry: Sergeant Morgan Wong of Edmonton, a member of the Loyal Edmonton Regiment serving with the battalion; Private Shaun Farrell of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan; Private Aidan Goulding of North Vancouver; and Private Hayden Lykkemark of Langley, British Columbia. Their battalion had been training for a deployment to Latvia next spring as part of Canada's NATO deterrence mission.
The fire ignited at about 4 p.m. MDT on October 17 during Exercise APOLLO SHOOTER, a high-intensity exercise involving grenades and live ammunition. A fire burning about a kilometre away was considered under control — then the wind shifted. Gusts reached roughly 100 kilometres an hour, and Major-General Wade Rutland, commander of the 1st Canadian Division, said the flames covered a kilometre in as little as 36 seconds, jumping fire guards and overrunning the unit's administrative area.
Alberta declared a Code Orange mass-casualty response as the injured were rushed to hospitals in Edmonton, Red Deer and Calgary. Nineteen of the 39 injured were in critical condition, some with severe burns, and fifteen required intubation. RCAF helicopters, search-and-rescue technicians and STARS air ambulances joined the response, and firefighters worked through the night as the fire crossed the base boundary into nearby farmland, forcing one family from their home.
Prime Minister Mark Carney called it "one of the worst tragedies for the Forces on Canadian soil in peacetime" and ordered flags at federal buildings to fly at half-mast. "The nation is in mourning for those brave members of our Armed Forces whom we have lost," he said. "Canadians come together in crisis — that is the best of our country." Defence Minister David J. McGuinty offered the government's deepest condolences and said Canada "remains committed to supporting all those affected and to honouring the service, dedication and sacrifice of these soldiers."
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre posted his tribute in French, naming all four soldiers and offering his most sincere condolences to their families, friends and comrades, with prayers for the injured to make a full recovery. "We will remember their commitment, we will honour their sacrifice, and we will stand with the entire Canadian Armed Forces family in this time of mourning," he wrote.
The military has ruled out terrorism and says there is no indication the fire was caused by oil and gas infrastructure. The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is investigating, with RCMP support, and a board of inquiry is expected to examine both the cause and the response. The source of the ignition remains unknown; preliminary indications point to a terrible accident, on a day the Army's own assessment had rated the fire risk low.
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