BBC confirms four soldiers killed in Wainwright fire

Rutland says fire moved a kilometre in 30 to 60 seconds

Family members and the Loyal Edmonton Regiment paid tribute on Sunday after the BBC confirmed the deaths of four Canadian Armed Forces members in Saturday’s grass fire at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in Alberta. The dead have been identified as Sgt. Morgan Wong, Pte. Shaun Farrell, Pte. Aidan Goulding, and Pte. Hayden Lykkemark.

Patricia Farrell, Shaun Farrell’s mother, wrote on Facebook that it was “with heavy hearts that we share the news that our son, Shaun Farrell, has passed away to be with our Heavenly Father.” The Loyal Edmonton Regiment, of which Wong was a member, said on Facebook that it was “deeply saddened” and extended “heartfelt condolences to [the group’s] families, friends, and fellow soldiers.” Sonia Monk, Goulding’s mother, told CBC that her son was an exceptional athlete and a natural leader. “He was always the guy who kept everybody’s spirits up,” Monk said. “He really was the light of my life.” A BBC video headline quoted a local mayor as calling the incident “unheard of.”

The fire broke out at about 16:00 local time (22:00 GMT) on Saturday in a grassy training area at the base, one of Canada’s busiest military training facilities, roughly 130 miles east of Edmonton, Alberta’s capital. The base hosts troops from Canada and allied countries. Of the 39 people receiving hospital care, at least 19 are in critical condition, the BBC reported. Warren Thirsk, an emergency department doctor at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, told CBC that the number of patients involved in the incident had “completely overwhelmed” healthcare facilities in Wainwright.

Maj.-Gen. Wade Rutland, commander of the 1st Canadian Division of the Canadian Armed Forces, told reporters the fire’s sudden spread caught personnel off guard. “The fire was 1km (0.6 miles) away when the wind shifted,” Rutland said. “It is not normal for a fire to move a kilometre in 30 to 60 seconds.” He recounted a conversation with one of his commanders about the moments the fire reached the training area. “I spoke to my commander last night, and he said within 30 seconds to a minute they saw no fire, and then there was a fire right on top of them,” Rutland said.

Members of the infantry had been conducting “high-intensity combat training with live munitions” at a grenade range and attack range when the fire spread, according to Rutland. He said officials were aware of a fire on the base for several hours before the rapid spread and decided that training “could carry on for a certain amount of time.”

Forecasters had issued a wind warning for large parts of Alberta on Saturday, predicting gusts of up to 90 km/h (66 mph), Canadian broadcaster CBS reported. The fire started in a grassy training area and spread rapidly because of those strong winds, Rutland said.

Some witnesses said they heard explosions, which prompted speculation that oil and gas infrastructure may have been hit and sparked the fire. Rutland said authorities “do not believe this [incident] to be a result of any oil and gas infrastructure.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney described the blaze as “one of the worst tragedies for the forces on Canadian soil in peacetime.” A BBC video headline also quoted Carney as saying “Canada must now serve” the service members killed. The Canadian Armed Forces said in a statement that “while the incident remains under investigation, at this time, there are no indications that it was the result of any terrorist activity.”

The cause of the fire has not been determined, and Rutland said the investigation may take at least a month. About 690 military personnel and 300 civilian workers are on site at the base on a typical day, according to the BBC.