By Amanda Stephenson
CALGARY, Oct 18 (Reuters) – At least seven people died in a major fire this weekend at a Canadian military base in Alberta, CBC News reported on Sunday.
Canadian authorities said there were deaths and injuries at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright but they have not released any casualty figures. CBC, the government-funded national broadcaster, cited unnamed sources for the death toll.
The base, one of Canada’s largest, is about 210 km (130 miles) east of Edmonton in Alberta, and National Defense Minister David McGuinty said on Sunday he would go to the city to be briefed on the situation.
Few details have been released about the fire, which took place about 4 p.m. (2200 GMT) Saturday in a training area at the base as winds gusted up to 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour).
Describing the blaze as “terrible” on Saturday, the minister said, “I cannot recall an incident like this in recent memory.”
Health staff in Edmonton said a “code orange,” or mass casualty event, was declared Saturday to coordinate the medical response for patients being transported from Wainwright, CBC News reported.
“Our thoughts are with all the brave women and men affected,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a social media post.
CFB Wainwright had 1,310 military and civilian personnel stationed there as of 2021, according to census data. It is home to the Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre, which runs training scenarios and exercises for the army.
The town of Wainwright, population about 6,600, is just north of the base.
The municipality posted on social media that the fire had crossed the base fence into the nearby district but no evacuation orders had been issued.
(Reporting by Amanda Stephenson in Calgary; Editing by Sergio Non and Cynthia Osterman)
