A wildfire almost twice as large as another one that had been threatening in west-central Alberta was burning out of control in the forests of the province's northwest.
Officials said the fire near Whitecourt was believed to have chewed through 15 square kilometres. They had planned to fly over the site overnight Friday with infrared equipment to determine its size.
Winds from the east were blowing the long and narrow fire towards the west where the province's Eagle Tower lookout was evacuated. The Virginia Hills Road near Highway 43 was also closed.
Meanwhile, weary firefighters finally managed to get a handle on what had previously been Alberta's largest forest fire.
The status of the Burnstick Lake fire in west-central Alberta was changed from out of control to being held. Fire officials said they were confident the blaze would not spread any further.
An evacuation notice issued to residents near Caroline, Rocky Mountain House and several campgrounds was lifted as a result.
Flames swept through almost nine square kilometres of mature timber and clearcuts on Crown land in the five days the fire burned out of control.
At its height, crowns of trees were exploding in flames, and more than 100 firefighters were involved in battling the blaze.
Fire officials feared the blaze would continue to grow over the May long weekend, but forecast winds never materialized.
"The fire is not expected to spread, based on the resources we have, and on the forecasted weather," said Rob Harris, provincial wildfire information officer.
Sundre Forest Products will attempt to harvest salvageable scorched timber within the next month.
There are 15 fires burning in Alberta's forest protection area. Crews have already been called to 529 fires this season.
Open burning has been banned in a large area of southwestern Alberta.
