Fire that caused toxic smoke alert in east-central Alberta out

Oilfield fire prompts shelter alert Some County of Minburn residents were told Jan. 30 to find shelter because an oilfield fire was producing toxic smoke.

An alert asking residents in an east-central Alberta county to seek shelter to avoid breathing toxic smoke was cancelled Tuesday evening.

The County of Minburn asked people to head indoors and to close all windows and doors due to toxic smoke that was being produced by an out-of-control crude-oil fire 23 kilometres southeast of Mannville.

At 7:06 p.m., the county cancelled the alert after emergency crews brought the fire at an oil-lease site under control, saying it was no longer producing toxic smoke.

The fire was extinguished at 9 p.m., according to the fire department.

The alert had been in effect for people between Highway 41 and Highway 870, south of Vermillion or Innisfree, and north of Wainwright.

The Village of Mannville is located 155 kilometres east of Edmonton on Highway 16.

The warning had been broadcast at 5:17 p.m. via the Alberta Emergency Alert app, on TV and through push alerts.