Wildfire alert issued for Clearwater County in central Alta.

A wildfire alert was issued Thursday afternoon for Clearwater County, northwest of Red Deer.

A wildfire alert was issued Thursday afternoon for an area southwest of Red Deer.

The province issued a wildfire alert at 4:12 p.m. for an area in Clearwater County.

“There is an out of control wildfire near Highway 734, about three kilometres northwest of the Highway 584 junction in southwest Clearwater County,” the province posted.

The province recommended taking the following precautionary actions:

• All campers, traffic and anyone in the backcountry within 10 km of Highway 734, near the Highway 584 junction should leave immediately;
• Residents in the area must prepare for a possible evacuation;
• There is no mandatory evacuation for residents at this time;
• Everyone must avoid the area so wildfire crews can action this fire; and
• This alert will be updated if an evacuation of residents in the area is required.