EDMONTON—Now in its second week, the Chuckegg Creek wildfire continues to rage three kilometres southwest of High Level, Alta., engulfing 105,000 hectares as crews battle the blaze from the ground and air. As the wildfire risk across all of northern Alberta remains extreme, and even small starts can turn into raging wildfires in a matter of hours, Richard Paton’s job as a provincial air attack officer currently stationed in Slave Lake, Alta. — one of 13 air tanker bases around Alberta — is to co-ordinate fire attacks from the air, allowing ground crews to move in closer to the centre of the inferno. Article Continued BelowCL-215T airtankers, also known as water skimmers, designed to waterbomb wildfires from the air, parked on the tarmac at the airbase in Slave Lake on Thursday, May 23, 2019. Richard Paton, a provincial air attack officer stationed in Slave Lake, Alta., on Thursday, stands next to a Turbo Commander 690A, known as the “bird dog,” from which he co-ordinates air attacks on wildfires.

Source: thestar May 27, 2019 23:43 UTC