Evacuation Alert Lifted as Rain Forecasted for Alberta Wildfires Near Oil Sands

Seven active wildfires are burning in the Fort McMurray and Lac La Biche areas of northern Alberta, with some fires within 20 kilometres of major oil sands sites including Cenovus Energy's Christina Lake and Canadian Natural Resources’s Jackfish. An evacuation alert issued on Saturday for the community of Conklin was lifted on Sunday.

A forecast for heavy rain was expected throughout the day on Sunday, and no other communities were under threat from existing blazes.

The risk of new fires starting due to warm, dry conditions remains extreme in the Fort McMurray area, according to fire officials. Canada is the world's fourth-largest oil producer, and the bulk of its production is clustered in northern Alberta's boreal forest. So far this year there have been no significant disruptions to Canadian oil company operations due to wildfire.

Last year, fires forced Canadian oil companies to temporarily shut in 344,000 barrels per day of oil sands production, representing about 7 per cent of Canada's overall crude oil output. 7 per cent of Canada's total production, as more than 100 wildfires burned in Alberta. In 2016, a wildfire destroyed part of the community of Fort McMurray and thousands of oil sands workers were evacuated.

At the height of that disaster, companies reduced oil output by a million barrels per day. A wildfire burned on Mount Underwood near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, British Columbia in 2025. The recurring risk of fire in Canada's oil sands region adds a level of uncertainty to company production forecasts in the spring and summer.