Alberta Conducts Major Emergency Drill for Wildfire and Flood Season
Alberta has launched a comprehensive emergency preparedness exercise in Edmonton, simulating simultaneous wildfires in the north and flooding in the south. The Emergency Management Exercise 2026 (EMX 26) brought together multiple agencies at the Provincial Emergency Coordination Centre to enhance response capabilities ahead of the critical wildfire season.
Multi-Agency Coordination in Action
Stephen Lacroix, managing director of the Alberta Emergency Management Agency, guided media through the annual exercise designed to prepare the province for whatever natural challenges may arise. "We were built on the shoulders of very significant, traumatic natural disasters in this province," Lacroix emphasized, referencing historical events including:
- The 2011 Slave Lake wildfire
- 2013 southern Alberta floods
- 2016 Fort McMurray fires
- 2020 northern Alberta floods
- 2023 wildfires affecting 2.2 million acres
- 2024 destruction of one-third of Jasper
The exercise featured realistic mock scenarios with participants wearing color-coded vests representing different functions:
- Yellow for logistics coordination
- Grey for financial management
- Red for operational response
- Blue for planning teams
Enhanced Response Capabilities
The scale of training has significantly increased following years when Alberta faced multiple concurrent disasters, such as 2025 when Chippewa Lake residents suffered community losses while the province hosted a G7 summit. "We've pivoted over recent years to an ability to manage numerous events at the same time, concurrently," Lacroix explained.
Barb Gamble, centre manager, described the facility as a "well-oiled machine" staffed with provincial duty officers monitoring the province 24/7. "We could get a notification from river forecast folks telling us there's a river flooding issue potentially happening. We could get a call from Environment and Climate Change Canada with severe weather warnings," Gamble detailed.
Comprehensive Partnership Network
The exercise involved extensive collaboration across government levels and sectors:
- Provincial ministries and agencies
- Federal partners including Public Safety Canada
- Environment and Climate Change Canada
- Indigenous Services representatives
- Military and RCMP personnel
- Municipal emergency responders
Participants like Carson Toy from the Alberta Utilities Commission and Dianne Gunderson from the Ministry of Affordability and Utilities worked through simulated emergency scenarios at the Muriel Stanley Venne Provincial Centre. The facility serves as the nerve center for provincial emergency coordination, receiving notifications from communities across Alberta and deploying field officers where needed.
Alberta's emergency management system has evolved through hard-earned experience with natural disasters. The annual exercise represents a proactive approach to ensuring the province can respond effectively when wildfires, floods, or other emergencies threaten communities across the region.
