Skip to content

Neighbours, fire departments band together to stop grass fire

When Karen Lauridsen realized a grass fire was raging near her residence outside of Perryvale on Highway 2 and Willowridge Road May 6, she said a feeling of panic ensued.
IMG_0072-web
Karen Lauridsen’s dogs Sugar (right) and Rosie stand amongst the bush where a fire burned outside Perryvale May 6. The fire burned approximately 50 acres, according to Athabasca County Fire Services co-ordinator Steve Hamilton.

When Karen Lauridsen realized a grass fire was raging near her residence outside of Perryvale on Highway 2 and Willowridge Road May 6, she said a feeling of panic ensued.

“Actually a really shocking moment for me was when I first heard of the fire and I was running out to the field. I could see the smoke,” Lauridsen said in an interview. “What was so shocking to me was the sound of the fire. The crackling, in the wind, and that was when I really became terrified.”

But fire departments and neighbours in the area banded together to stop the fire from reaching any homes, Lauridsen said.

“Everyone really pulled together. We all worked as best we could to get it out. It was a real community effort,” she said. “Everyone really pulled together and luckily there were no accidents, no injuries and really only property damage to the field.”

Athabasca County regional fire services co-ordinator Steve Hamilton said four fire departments responded to May 6 fire, including the Town of Athabasca, Athabasca County, Rochester and Colinton. The fire took place entirely on grass and in the bush, Hamilton said, burning approximately 50 acres of grass.

“The firefighters did a really good job of containing it,” Hamilton said in an interview. “There was danger to a residence, but they managed to stop the fire before it got there.”

That residence belonged to Tim Goertz, who said in an interview the fire came up right to the edge of his lot.

“Very fortunate,” Goertz said. “If we didn’t have our volunteer fire department, our neighbours, I’m sure we would have lost the place.”

Hamilton said firefighters were on scene after receiving a call May 6 at 2:30 p.m and stayed for approximately eight hours. Firefighters returned to the area over the next two days to deal with hotspots, he added.

Fire allegedly caused by dragging trailer 

Hamilton said there is an unconfirmed report the fire was caused by a vehicle pulling a trailer on Highway 2. The trailer had a damaged wheel, causing it to throw sparks which started the fire, Hamilton said.

“Those reports are unconfirmed as of yet,” he said.

Regardless of the unconfirmed report, there was no lightning storms in the area at the time, which means the fire was started by people, Hamilton said.

“As far as I know right now, in the immediate area we haven’t had any lightning so far this year. So any fires right now are started by people,” he said.

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks