OTTAWA, Oct 19 (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Monday that the cause of a fire that killed at least four military members and injured dozens of others in Alberta on Saturday is still unknown.
Carney said in an address to Parliament that soldiers and reserve members were conducting live-fire exercises at an army base in Wainwright while a fire was burning in the training area.
“Driven by ferocious winds, the fire jumped nearly a kilometer in less than a minute to where soldiers were gathered,” Carney said. He added that 50 investigators are currently on the ground, from the army and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, to determine how the disaster happened.
“This loss touches every corner of the nation,” Carney said.
Officials said 39 people remain hospitalized, with 19 people in critical condition. The soldiers and reserve members were preparing to deploy to Latvia, where Canadian forces have their largest international military operation.
Kent Moore, a professor of atmospheric physics at the University of Toronto, said the embers from grass fires in dry conditions can spread incredibly quickly. He said there didn’t appear to be any rain in the area, so it was unlikely the fire was triggered by lightning.
“The fact that the winds were so strong suggests to me that it wouldn’t have taken much to start this fire,” he said, speculating that it was likely caused by human error, including sparks from vehicles or live fire, or an errant cigarette from a smoker.
(Reporting by Maria Cheng; Editing by Aurora Ellis and Mark Porter)
