Top Tweets for #WainwrightAlberta

I want to update my original post which was based on another post that laid out the scenario & location of the incident. I accepted the scenario & questioned the location. In fact I’ve now received a great deal of new information from soldiers who were there & want to correct the record. So here’s what I know: the location is correct, the scenario (an artillery round caused the explosion) was totally wrong. Soldiers on the ground are saying 2 training scenarios were happening in that location simultaneously. First there is lots of static ranges that face the second lake from rifle ranges to a 60 mm mortar range to a grenade range to an antitank range limited to the M72 & 84 mm Carl Gustov. These hand held shoulder fired anti armour weapons have been used by CDN infantry platoons for 4 decades now. They are generally very effective & reliable. I’m told a Carl G was being fired at a target some 300 metres away from a static cement bay using the standing position. The safety officer stands about 18” away in a cement bay observing every action taken by the loader & gunner. This is very basic infantry training & carried out at least annually. In this case a high explosive (HE) round was being fired. Apparently shortly after the HE round was fired it malfunctioned & dove at full speed into the ground striking either a buried natural gas wellhead or pipeline which exploded. There were casualties at this range caused by the blast wave. Simultaneously there were some 150 soldiers training in fighting in built up areas (FIBUA or Urban Warfare) using blank ammo or just running through the basic drills using dry fire. No live ammunition, no explosives of any type, certainly no live indirect fire. There were 3 wooden structures being used & all three were completely destroyed by the blast. A significant number of casualties occurred here. The explosion led to a grass fire which was whipped up by strong gusts of wind which blew directly through the units bivouac site (tented area where troops sleep, rest, park vehicles etc) casing additional casualties. The fire then continued on & went beyond the training area into the municipality of Wainwright. At this point, it appears that this series of incidents began with a round malfunctioning & doing damage that never could have been imagined let alone predicted or prevented. As was the case last night, the fog of war/crisis still exists so information may still change. This is not because of a cover up or some imaginary conspiracy. If the casualty count is only half as high as some are claiming you will have to go back to the darkest days of WWII to find similar numbers & never has a training exercise seen anything like this so a great deal must be done in the immediate aftermath before making definitive public statements so please have patience, please believe everyone is trying to get this right & those who really care are more than willing to correct their earlier errors as the newest information comes in. Think long & hard about what you post…thousand of soldiers & their families are watching! Please keep them all including the military & civilian first responders in your prayers. I hope this helps & I’ll potentially post more as it becomes available.

Major General Wade Rutland, higher headquarters for units training at CFB Wainwright, confirmed that four Canadian Armed Forces members died and many others were injured in a rapidly spreading grass fire during a training exercise by 3 PPCLI on October 17 “The Soldiers of the Canadian army suffered a terrible loss during a training activity at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright at approximately 4:00pm yesterday,” Rutland said. “During the conduct of a training, a grass fire ignited in the training area. The cause of this fire is under active investigation.” The fallen, as named by Rutland: Private Aiden Goulding, 3 PPCLI, North Vancouver, BC Private Sean Farrell, 3 PPCLI, Prince Albert, SK Private Hayden Leichmark, 3 PPCLI, Langley, BC Sergeant Morgan Wong, Loyal Edmonton Regiment, Edmonton, AB He noted multiple training activities were underway. “Uncommonly strong winds caused the fire to spread rapidly and shift direction towards the range administrative area. The fire did originate within the training area and did cross established fire guards before being contained in conjunction with municipal authorities.”Reports of explosions were addressed directly: “Certainly we do not believe this to be as a result of any oil and gas infrastructure nor any outside interference.” “Unfortunately, I can confirm four Canadian Armed Forces members are deceased and many others injured. Casualties have been evacuated to a multitude of medical facilities to receive the best care our system has to offer.” Rutland thanked medical personnel, first responders, STARS, air ambulance crews, and military aviation teams for their rapid response. The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, 1st Military Police Regiment Incident Response Team, RCMP, and CAF Fire Marshal team members are investigating. “Our top priority at this time is care of soldiers and families. At this time, we ask that families be respected during this very difficult time. Armed Forces is providing support to affected families through the chain of command, chaplain services and other available support resources.” “Our thoughts are with the families and loved ones of those we lost and with the injured members still receiving care. We stand with the teammates, friends and units affected by this terrible tragedy. The well being of our people is our highest priority.”