Low moisture and high winds spell major wildfire risk for southern Alberta

Posted on May 15, 2026 by Ryan Dahlman

By Zoe Mason
Southern Alberta Newspapers

Cypress County is facing an unusually severe start to the wildfire season, as the area has reached an ‘extreme fire danger’ rating weeks sooner than usual.

“Typically, we don’t see that until late June, or even into July and August,” said Cypress County emergency services co-ordinator and fire chief Jason Linton.

Linton says a low-moisture winter and a spring season characterized by several high-wind events already has worked to dry out the land and set conditions that allow fires to spread rapidly when they occur.

The region was placed under a fire advisory on May 4 as result of the early season risk. All fire permits have been cancelled until further notice as a result.

Linton says the early risk has already translated into some notable fires. He says a pair of fires near Irvine and Suffield two weeks ago were the largest his department has responded to in the past three or four years.

Last year, the Cypress County fire department responded to 23 wild land flash grassfires across the season. In 2026, that number is trending higher. Linton says his department has responded to grassfire calls every month of 2026.

Still, he says it would only take one significant precipitation event for the entire risk calculus to change.

“Two or three storms with 40 to 60 millimetres, or one rainstorm of 100 millimetres could drastically reset the conditions overnight,” he said.

The Alberta government announced several improvements to the province’s wildfire capacity and strategy at a news conference on May 4. One new program introduced this season will offer municipalities with grants up to $125,000 to cover costs incurred when provincial resources are called in to support local fire crews during an emergency.

“We just want to make sure that when municipalities have a fire break out, they don’t consider the cost, they consider the effectiveness of having as many boots on the ground as possible and having our air support,” said Minister of Forestry and Parks Todd Loewen.

Linton says the mutual aid incentive is much appreciated by municipalities like Cypress.

“We really welcome that, and hopefully we’re never going to need it, but we do appreciate them coming into the non-Forest Protection Areas to supervise those types of services for Cypress County,” said Linton.

Loewen says the early outlook for the province is optimistic, with sufficient moisture throughout the winter in the north keeping conditions fairly favourable.

He says the primary concern in the province right now is grassfires getting out of control in the dry southern parts of the province.

The Ministry of Forestry and Parks says uptake for seasonal firefighting positions is up in 2026. This year, about 1,200 Albertans have applied for those positions, compared to just under 800 in 2025.

Budget 2026 includes $169 million for wildfire management initiatives.

The May 4 announcements build on improvements to the province’s air attack capabilities disclosed earlier this year, including enhancements to Alberta’s night-vision helicopter fleet and a $400-million contract with De Havilland Canada for five new made-in-Alberta waterbombers.

The province presently has four of its own waterbombers, and contracts out another 14.