Residents and businesses were evacuated Sunday after a wildfire near Deer Ridge Estates started south of Grande Prairie.

Around 4:45 p.m., police were observed blocking Hwy. 40 and telling campers at the KOA campground to evacuate. 

By 6:30 p.m., an evacuation order was in place for Sunrise Estates, Sunrise Estates 2 and Core 40 Industrial Park.

An update from Grande Prairie Regional Emergency Partnership (GPREP) at 10 p.m. said that “County Regional Fire Service and Alberta Wildfire have made significant progress to contain the fire using fire retardant dropped by air tankers and a dozer guard.”

It confirmed that no homes were lost due to the fire and that the fire crews would work overnight to fight the fire.

GPREP said that about 90 per cent of the fire was contained by Monday morning and that ground crews and an Alberta Wildfire bucketing helicopter will focus on extinguishing hot spots throughout the day. 

On Monday evening, evacuees were able to return to their homes, said the county noting that the fire was being held “due to the availability of air tankers and swift and ongoing ground fire crew response.”

Fire crews remained on site overnight and an update on Tuesday morning from the county said that crews have created a perimeter and “there should be no opportunity for the fire to pick up and begin moving.”

Fire bans

The County of Grande Prairie then issued a fire ban that also included the towns of Beaverlodge, Sexsmith and Wembley. 

County fire crews spent much of the weekend battling wildfire blazes. 

Morgan’s Mountain wildfire

On Saturday afternoon, fire crews responded to a wildfire in the Morgan's Mountain areanortheast of Sexsmith. 

Three homes were evacuated, and the fires destroyed a “few sheds and an RV,” said the county.

The Morgan’s Mountain fire was reported as being held by about 5 p.m. on Saturday.

The cause is still under investigation.