Warning: Graphic content EDSON, Alta. - The family of a 24-year-old Canadian soldier seriously injured in a deadly fire at CFB Wainwright is holding on to hope as he faces a long and uncertain recovery. Cpl. Sean Hiatt, who grew up near Edson, Alta., suffered second-degree burns to approximately half his body in Saturday’s fire, which killed four soldiers and injured 39 others. He is being treated at the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton, which has a specialized burn treatment unit. “We have each other,” said Teresa Hiatt, his older sister. “And we know that Sean would want us to be strong too.” Despite the heartbreak, Teresa and Sara Dizon, Sean’s girlfriend of four years, shared smiles as they sat together inside Teresa’s coffee shop in Edson. The business is temporarily closed as Teresa focuses on supporting her brother. Both women are determined to remain positive, saying that’s what Sean would want. “Sean is very easy to love,” Sara said, describing him as outgoing and bubbly. But behind those smiles are memories of a terrifying weekend that neither woman will soon forget. Teresa was out for dinner Saturday when she came across a social media post about an incident at CFB Wainwright. Knowing her brother was there for military training, she immediately contacted Sara to find out when she had last heard from him. “I kept telling my husband, like, I can’t do this, I can’t do this, I can’t do this,” Teresa recalled. Her husband began calling hospitals, eventually learning that Sean had been taken to hospital in Wainwright. Sara, meanwhile, repeatedly tried calling her boyfriend, but received no answer. When Sean’s mother called her in tears, Sara feared the worst. “She was like, ‘he is alive.’ And I’m like, ‘thank God.’ That’s everything that we had to know at that time,” she recalled. The following morning, Teresa and Sara travelled to Edmonton, where Sean had been transferred for specialized care. Nothing could have prepared them for what they saw. Sean was sedated, with a breathing tube down his throat and bandages covering his face. His ears and nose had also been burned. “We both broke,” Teresa said. “You just wanted to take him into your arms and just, like, hold him and tell him it was OK,” she said. “You just feel so helpless.” Sara said seeing the man she loves in such a condition was devastating. “I never saw him like that. It was very hard,” she said. “And I can’t stop imagining what he’d been through.” The tragedy unfolded Saturday afternoon as soldiers conducted live-fire training at the military base in Alberta. Military officials say a nearby grass fire, initially considered under control, was driven by a sudden shift in powerful winds, rapidly overtaking soldiers in the training area. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. For Sean’s family, the immediate concern is getting him through the critical early stages of recovery. Teresa said doctors are focused on stabilizing his condition while assessing the extent of his injuries, including possible damage from smoke inhalation. He may require surgeries and skin grafts. Doctors have warned the family that recovery will be a marathon, not a sprint. For now, even the smallest movements offer hope. “When we said goodbye to him last night, he actually wiggled his thumb,” Teresa recalled. “We were just so happy to see that.” For the family, it was a small but meaningful moment as they wait for signs of recovery. Sean comes from a family of 11 siblings, with relatives living in different communities and provinces. His parents are staying in Edmonton, while other family members are trying to balance work, children and travel to be at his bedside. Teresa said the support from the military community has been overwhelming, with veterans, restaurants and others providing food and assistance to families at the hospital. “The military family is very close. We’re getting a glimpse of that, and now I know why he loved it,” she said. The tragedy has also left the family grieving for the soldiers who died. Teresa said one of those killed was someone Sean knew from his military unit, adding another emotional challenge he may face during his recovery. For Sara, the message to her boyfriend is simple: his loved ones will be waiting and fighting alongside him for as long as it takes. “We’re just here for him,” she said. “We’re not giving up this easy. And we know that he’s not giving up too.” “He’s very tough. He doesn’t go down that easy.”
