Heavy equipment operators and emergency crews with the Calgary Fire Department are constructing and reinforcing access routes to safely reach remaining hot spots and areas requiring additional soil cover, at the ECCO Recycling facility landfill fire in southeast Calgary.
Although the fire is under control, firefighters still face the grueling task of excavating, isolating, and extinguishing buried hot spots. Access roads are being used by water trucks and excavators to reach isolated pockets of smoldering debris. Water application was intentionally limited in some locations to allow newly constructed routes to stabilize.
Crews made steady progress in the southern sector of the facility, capping disturbed areas with heavy layers of soil and clay. Soil placement is a critical component of landfill fire suppression, since it helps crews isolate burning material, reduce oxygen flow and minimize the potential for re-ignition.
Crews continue making progress in the southern portion of the affected area, where operations are focused on accessing, isolating and extinguishing buried hot spots. Despite visible progress and minor improvements in smoke density overnight, firefighters warn that nearby residents may continue to notice smoke plumes, lingering odors, and intermittent surface flare-ups. Officials stress that sudden bursts of flame are a routine part of uncovering buried embers and do not signal an escalation of the fire.
During operations near an underground utility access structure, workers reported an unusual odour. As a precaution, the Calgary Fire Department Hazardous Materials Team assessed conditions within the structure and surrounding work area. The assessment confirmed conditions were safe and operations continued as planned.
Aerial monitoring of the area continues, and the Calgary Fire Department has issued a reminder to the public that flying unauthorized private drones near active emergency operations presents a severe safety hazard to response teams and violates Transport Canada regulations.