MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - Provincial officials downgraded the wildfire danger rating to high across the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area Tuesday.
Parts of Mountain View County are included in the forest area, namely west of Sundre and Bergen, covering Coal Camp and Bearberry west of Range Road 60 from Township Road 312 to the north boundary of the county.
"The wildfire danger in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area is high. While cooler temperatures and higher humidity are helping conditions recover overnight, moisture quickly disappears during the day, leaving vegetation dry," the province said in its Sept 2. update for the area.
"With continued high daytime temperatures and no significant rain in the forecast, the wildfire danger is expected to remain elevated for some time," the update said.
The area had been under very high wildfire danger since Friday.
Sept. 1 marked the sixth consecutive day Mountain View County was under a heat warning advising of a long duration heat event that started at the beginning of last week.
A fire advisory was issued for the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area Tuesday Aug. 26 and remains in effect.
- RELATED: Fire advisory enacted Tuesday in forest protection area west of Sundre
- RELATED: Fire restriction imposed in Mountain View County effective Wednesday
While existing fire permits remain valid under the advisory, new permits will be issued on a case-by-case basis for essential burning only.
Safe campfires are still allowed. Fireworks and exploding targets are prohibited.
Another portion of Mountain View County is in the Calgary Forest Area, namely west of Range Road 54 from Township Road 310 to the south boundary of the county west of Water Valley. The wildfire danger in the Calgary Forest Area was elevated to high on Aug. 25 and has remained there since.
A fire advisory was issued for the Calgary Forest Area and remains.
Citing dry and hot conditions across the region, Mountain View County imposed a fire restriction for the entire municipality, effective Wednesday, Aug. 27.
There are currently no active wildfires in the Rocky Mountain House Forest Area.
Since January 1, there have been 65 wildfires recorded in the area.
