Fire That Killed Four Canadian Soldiers Began on Grenade Launcher Range, Officials Say

Officials have said that a fire that killed four soldiers and injured dozens more at a Canadian military base in Alberta began on a grenade launcher range during training exercises.

Brig. Gen. Vanessa Hanrahan, the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal, said in a statement on Thursday that the blaze started on Oct. 17 on the automatic grenade launcher range at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright "during routine military training activities."

According to Hanrahan, the fire at first stayed inside the range's "Permanent Danger Area 2." That limited the ability of firefighters to fight it directly, so crews monitored it through the day instead. A later "change in wind direction and velocity" then "significantly increased the fire's intensity and rate of speed which led to these tragic events," she said. She added that there was no indication natural gas infrastructure played a role.

Four soldiers died and 39 others were injured. The Canadian Armed Forces said on Thursday that 27 of the injured remained in hospital, while 12 had been treated and released.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Mark Carney said the fire was "driven by ferocious winds" and "jumped nearly a kilometer in less than a minute to where soldiers were gathered." He said 50 investigators had been brought in. The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is leading the inquiry with support from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. "We will get the answers to what caused this terrible tragedy, as expeditiously and transparently as necessary," Carney told reporters on Monday.

The fire overtook soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, along with Army reservists who were taking part in live-fire training. About 84 soldiers from Charlie Company were split between two locations, one for throwing grenades and another for practicing attacks on simulated enemy positions. The fire swept into the second area. Carney said the troops were preparing for a mission next spring to reinforce Canadian forces serving with NATO in Latvia.

Maj. Gen. Wade Rutland said on Sunday that military officials had known about the fire for hours but believed it was contained, and training was allowed to continue until the winds suddenly shifted. He said investigators will look at whether the wind pushed the flames toward the soldiers or whether the fire spread unseen through vegetation. They will also examine whether military safety procedures need to be changed.

The military named the dead as Sgt. Morgan Wong of Edmonton; Pvt. Shaun Farrell of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan; Pvt. Aidan Goulding of North Vancouver, British Columbia; and Pvt. Hayden Lykkemark of Langley, British Columbia.