Arabic version: مقتل أربعة في حريق بقاعدة عسكرية كندية

According to BBC News, at least four service members died and dozens were seriously injured after a huge fire swept through Canadian Forces Base Wainwright on Saturday. Prime Minister Mark Carney described the incident as one of the worst peacetime tragedies on Canadian soil in the military’s history.

The fire broke out at about 16:00 local time (22:00 GMT). Authorities have confirmed few details about what triggered it. Local media reported that a gas main may have been struck during a live-firing exercise, but Carney did not confirm the cause. The Canadian defence ministry said the cause remains under investigation and that there were no indications of terrorist activity.

The Municipal District of Wainwright said the blaze spread rapidly because of high winds. Carney said military and civilian fire crews fought the fire through the night in extremely difficult conditions, risking their lives to protect others. It has not been confirmed whether those injured were on the base’s training ranges or whether the fire spread to living quarters.

Carney confirmed the four deaths on Sunday and said the families of those killed had been informed. He did not say whether the death toll was expected to rise. Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton declared a code orange, a disaster-response protocol for a high-casualty incident, on Saturday evening. Canadian Forces Base Wainwright is a busy military training base in rural Alberta, with more than 1,000 people able to be based there at any given time.