On Thursday, July 2nd 2015, at approximately 1:42 PM, the RCMP were notified that North Tallcree First Nations Reserve, Alberta would be evacuated due to an out of control wildfire that was threatening the community at a distance of 10 km away. Heavy smoke was also threatening the area and led to highway closures on Hwy. 88. Members of the community were evacuated to High Level and the scene was secured and held by Fort Vermilion RCMP Detachment with the assistance of several specialized units from the south that assisted immensely.
Over the next several days the fire grew in size of approximately 1,661 hectares to 3,237 hectares and came within 3 km of the community.
We are pleased to announce that as of today, Tuesday, July 7th 2015 the evacuation order has been canceled and residents have started to make their way back to the community. The RCMP have departed North Tallcree and the area is now safe for re-entry with North Tallcree Band facilitating the re-entry.
The Fort Vermilion RCMP would like to thank Sustainable Resource Development (SRD), local and out of area firefighters who worked countless areas to ensure the safety of the community and numerous other agencies and volunteers who assisted in this time of need.