Alberta firefighters battle out-of-control wildfire after natural gas line rupture

A natural gas pipeline rupture Tuesday morning in west-central Alberta has sparked a wildfire.

TC Energy activated its emergency response procedures after it was notified about the incident, involving its Nova Gas Transmission Line, located 40 kilometres northwest of Edson, Alta., at about 11 a.m., the company said in a statement. Edson is about 200 kilometres west of Edmonton and about 160 km northeast of the B.C.-Alberta border.

"The pipeline incident did create a wildfire and so Alberta Wildfire, Yellowhead County and TC Energy are currently responding to the wildfire," said Caroline Charbonneau, Alberta Wildfire information officer for the Edson forest area.

The fire was considered out of control Tuesday afternoon, but an update by Alberta Wildfire posted at 7 p.m. stated the fire is now considered as being held.

"This means that given current weather conditions and resources, the wildfire is not anticipated to grow past expected boundaries," the update said, noting the wildfire covered about 10 hectares.

The Canadian Energy Regulator (CER) said in a statement late Tuesday that it is responding to the incident.

All TC Energy personnel working in the area were safely evacuated and there are no reported injuries, the regulator said.

"CER inspectors will be onsite to monitor and assess the company's immediate response and verify that all reasonable actions are being taken to protect workers, the public and the environment," the CER said in its statement.

Charbonneau said Tuesday afternoon that conditions are dry but firefighters are making good progress and currently there are no communities threatened by the fire.

Yellowhead County said in a statement that it "worked with the gas company to shut the pipeline in. There is no more leaking gas."

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, the county said.

TC Energy said the affected 4.5-kilometre section of the pipeline has been isolated and shut down.

"There are no reported injuries. Our primary focus right now is the health and safety of responding personnel, surrounding communities and mitigating risk to the environment," the company said in a statement on its website.

Alberta Wildfire is working with Yellowhead County and the company to fight the wildfire. As of Tuesday afternoon, the response includes eight pieces of heavy equipment, 12 wildland firefighters, air tankers and helicopters. No injuries have been reported.

The Nova Gas Transmission Line network spans 24,494 kilometres, according to the TC Energy website. It connects natural gas production in B.C. and Alberta to domestic and export markets.

In April 2022, a natural gas leak from the pipeline in northwestern Alberta caught fire and was investigated by the Transportation Safety Board. The TSB released its investigation report into that incident in January, finding that the pipeline rupture was due to external corrosion.

The TSB said in a statement Tuesday it would be deploying an investigator following the release and ignition of natural gas from the NOVA Gas pipeline.

The CER said the affected section of the 36-inch natural gas pipeline has been fully isolated and TC Energy reported that there are no supply impacts because of the rupture.