Cypress County responds to statement from Fire Commissioner
CYPRESS COUNTY, AB — Cypress County is responding to a statement from the province about the cause of the Hilda grass fire six weeks ago.
Thursday afternoon, the Office of the Fire Commissioner in Alberta released a statement about the grass fire on October 17, 2017. The office has determined the point of origin of the fire was in a burning put, which had been used under a fire permit from Cypress County on October 13th. The statement does not release where in the county the pit was located, but says the permit holder thought they had put the fire out at the end of the day.
The commissioner’s statement says it’s most likely the elevated wind speeds on October 17 provided additional oxygen to a remaining ember or embers from the previous fire, causing it to spread.