Multiple people were killed and injured after a “serious incident” caused a fire that tore through a Canadian military base in Alberta, officials said on Saturday.
Defence minister David McGuinty said at a brief press conference that the “very tragic events” at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright had led to a number of casualties.
“I’m saddened to share that there have been both fatalities and injuries as a result of an incident on the base,” McGuinty said, without providing details. The minister said it was an ongoing emergency.
CFB Wainwright, located about 200km southeast of Edmonton, is one of the busiest army bases in Canada.
RM Block
The Wainright RCMP detachment said they responded to the base at about 4pm local time. Civilian first responders were on the scene along with military personnel, McGuinty said, describing it as an “active and delicate” situation.
“I cannot recall an incident like this in recent memory,” he said. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police would be involved in investigating the incident, he said.
Hospitals in Edmonton activated a code orange, used for mass casualty events, as they expected a surge of patients with local hospitals overwhelmed, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp reported.
Prime minister Mark Carney said earlier on social media that “a serious incident creating a major fire” had occurred at the base.
The municipality of Wainwright said the fire “crossed the base fence earlier today and is being actively managed”. High winds in the region caused the fire to spread. Fire crews from several regions are working and an emergency response has been set up. The town has a population of about 7,000 people.
[ Separatists win Quebec provincial election in blow to Mark CarneyOpens in new window ]
Crews from neighbouring Saskatchewan were providing support, the province’s premier Scott Moe said on social media.
Alberta, a province of five million people, is set to vote in a referendum on Monday in which voters could choose to begin a process to separate from Canada. Advance polls in the area were shut down due to the emergency, the provincial elections agency said.
Wainwright is home to the Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre, which prepares soldiers from across the country for “realistic” battlefield conditions.
CFB Wainwright has suffered casualties during exercises in the past. In 2020, a soldier died after sustaining a gunshot wound during training. Incidents in 2017, 2014 and 2005 each killed one soldier and collectively injured at least seven in rollovers of light armoured vehicles. – Bloomberg
