Canada’s military disclosed on Thursday that a live grenade exercise was the cause of a recent deadly fire at an Alberta base, where four Canadian service members were killed and 39 people were injured.
The grenade training sparked the fast-moving grass fire that was picked up by strong winds at the Canadian military base on Saturday, catching the soldiers off guard.
“The fire initiated on the automatic grenade launcher range,” Brig. Gen. Vanessa Hanrahan said, adding it “initiated as a result of routine military training that was happening on that range at the time.”
At least 84 soldiers were training at the grenade range or a nearby area where they practiced attacks on simulated enemy positions. The fire started in the grenade range before sweeping across the second training area.
Maj. Gen. Wade Rutland previously said the fire was less than a mile away when the wind shifted, carrying the flames across that distance in 36 seconds. Military officials believed the fire was sufficiently contained for hours before it broke out.
On Sunday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the incident “one of the worst tragedies for the forces on Canadian soil in peacetime.” He ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff on federal buildings nationwide.
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Of the 39 people injured, 19 were in critical condition. As of Thursday, 27 people remain hospitalized.
The troops were training for a spring deployment to Latvia, where Canadian forces have their largest overseas military operation. About 2,000 to 2,200 Canadian personnel are deployed in the small European country.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
