Residents, business owners return to Waterton
Residents and business owners began heading back into Waterton on Tuesday, while Parks Canada also confirmed the Kenow fire is now classified as being held.
Although the wildfire remains active and still covers an area of approximately 38,100 hectares, activity is predominantly on the fire perimeter and at localized hotspots within the perimeter where pockets of unburned fuels remain.
Those conditions allowed a phased re-entry to begin into the Waterton townsite for residents, leaseholders and business owners. Only those who had been contacted by Parks Canada were allowed entry.
"The townsite is pristine, if you didn’t know there was a fire, you absolutely would not know,” said cabin owner Carol Cronkhite, who returned to the Waterton townsite with her family Tuesday. “Nothing but miraculous.”
“We thank you for your ongoing patience and will let the general public know when access to the Waterton townsite is restored,” Parks Canada officials said in a release.
“We wish to remind the public that the Kenow fire is still active in the area and within the park boundaries. Parks Canada continues to work to complete a detailed assessment of risks such as danger trees, rock falls and other hazards.”
Suppression efforts for the Castle Branch Fire also continued Tuesday. It is still estimated to be 221 hectares in size approximately 23 kilometres from Castle Mountain Resort and 30 kilometres from Beaver Mines.
Conditions continue to allow for the use of aircraft for both assessment and suppression as required, while crews continue to be deployed on the ground as well.
A cold front began moving into the area overnight Monday and is forecasted to bring cooler temperatures and limited precipitation for the next three days. Fire behaviour and smoke could still be seen under these forecasted conditions, however, Parks Canada said.