As of Tuesday at 4:00 p.m., the Dunes West Wildfire continues to burn out of control and is around 1,700 hectares in size. As of Tuesday afternoon, additional firefighters from Calgary, Strathmore, Chestermere, Lloydminster, and Smoky River were in Grande Prairie helping local crews battle the blaze. According to the Grande Prairie Regional Emergency Partnership update, firefighters continue working to maintain the perimeter and getting hotspots that flare up under control. According to GPREP, the focus is on preventing the fire from spreading.
The evacuation status in the area remains the same, but evacuees who have had a Temporary Access Permit denied in the past few days are told they can reapply. According to GPREP, approved permits allow them to gain access to their home temporarily once, and to go back again they will need to reapply. Evacuees are being advised there is a backlog of permit applications which are being processed as quickly as possible. As well the hours of operation for the evacuee reception centre at Bonnetts Energy Centre, and the call centre have been updated, with both being open from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.
According to the GPREP update, ATCO Energy is also seeing widespread power outages in the area with crews working to assess the damages. Residents are being cautioned to stay clear of any downed power lines, or crews working in the area. According to ATCO, they are working to restore power to these areas; but up-to-date information on the outages can be found on the company’s power outage map.