Red Deer County’s fire chief wants two significant grass fires his department responded to on Tuesday to serve as a reminder for folks just how easy a dangerous blaze can start.

Drayton Bussiere says late snow in April did not help with dryness like many may assume, and he adds the fire restriction currently in place is unlikely to be lifted for the upcoming long weekend, despite rain being in the forecast.

The first incident on Tuesday had crews responding at about 1:45 p.m to a grass fire that became a structure fire, south of Bowden and close to the Olds exit.

Bussiere says the fire is (as of 4 p.m.) on a property between Hwy 2 and Hwy 2A.

The cause is undetermined, though he notes it’s mostly under control. No injuries have been reported, though at least one structure took fire damage.

Red Deer County fire personnel were joined by those from Bowden, Innisfail, and Olds.

The second incident had crews responding at about 2:15 p.m. to a fire between Red Deer and Sylvan Lake, on the north side of Hwy 11, just west of Range Road 285.

Bussiere says it appears a vehicle with mechanical issues was pulling over when a metal part may have dragged along the ground, causing sparks to fly into the grass.

Busierre says there have been no reported injuries, nor damage to structures.

As of 4 p.m., crews are mopping up and have the fire under control. Red Deer County responded to this one solo.

^Contributed by Debbie.

Bussiere says even though certain types of apparatus are still permitted under a fire restriction, it is imperative that they be monitored at all times, and fully put out or extinguished when done with.

“We are under very, very dry conditions. Our crews, in the last 15 days, have been extremely busy, and a big number of those incidents that we’ve responded to are outside fires of various kinds. Every year, we respond to fires that are started by people throwing cigarette butts out their windows while they’re driving. We respond to lots that are reignitions of old burn piles that were smoldering in the ground, and then the dry, windy conditions reignite them,” says Bussiere.

“We’ve responded to several different call types of outside fires in the last couple of weeks, and really the biggest contributor to that is human-caused fires. We’re just asking people to be extra cautious and be very mindful of the fact that it’s extremely dry. And we’re not in a heavily forested area, which is where the largest wildfires usually are, but we do have lots of grasslands and smaller forested areas that are just as susceptible to fires as the big forests are.”

In fact, since May 1, Red Deer County crews have responded to 23 outside fire incidents.

Any person violating the conditions of the current fire restriction may be held liable for damages and costs associated with extinguishing a fire, and may face prosecution and penalties under Red Deer County Fire Services Bylaw 1010- 2025 and/or the Forest and Prairie Protection Act.

More on the current restriction can be read here.