CALGARY — Alberta’s justice minister and solicitor general is accusing conservative “opponents” — a group he says includes the media, provincial NDP and the federal Liberals — of wanting Alberta’s healthcare system to collapse during the pandemic.

Minister Kaycee Madu defined his stance in a series of Facebook comments added to his own May 8 post of a photo of his COVID-19 vaccination on his personal account as well as a May 6 post of George Clark, leader of the Albertans First Movement.

In a reply to another commenter who questioned the severity of COVID-19 on Clark’s post, Madu agreed that the majority of people who contract the virus will make a full recovery before arguing that everything must be done to prevent the potential death of any Albertan and potential overwhelming the province’s healthcare system.

“My point is that I don’t think it will be responsible to simply wait until we have a disaster on our hands,” said Madu in his post. “That’s what the NDP, the media and the federal Liberals were looking for and want. We simply couldn’t allow that to happen.

“While I hear the anger and disappointment of our people, I will continue to urge calm, patience and cooperation as we near the end of this pandemic. I ask that we don’t tear ourselves down and hand over Alberta to the NDP. We have done so before, and it did not go well for us, and in my view, we will be making a monumental mistake doing so again simply because conservatives disagree on the pandemic restrictions response.”

Madu reaffirmed his position after sharing his vaccine photo on social media. When a follower asked him to take steps to “restore peace” and “stop the path to conflict”, Madu declared his commitment to both the cause and to unity — before immediately drawing a line in the sand with his comments that followed.

“I urge calm, a little patience and unity to bring these pandemic and restrictions to end,” said Madu in the May 8 post. “Our opponents do not want these pandemic and restrictions to end. We cannot afford to fall into their trap.”

NDP Critic for Health David Shepherd and Critic for Justice Irfan Sabir condemned Madu’s comments in a joint statement released Monday.

“Madu’s comments are despicable, and he must apologize immediately,” said Shepherd. “Our Opposition Caucus has always called for more support for our frontline healthcare heroes, essential workers, and all the Albertans who have suffered immensely through this pandemic. Madu and his colleagues have ignored medical advice, fought a war with doctors, and threatened 11,000 frontline healthcare workers with layoffs.”

“It’s typical of the Kenney government to blame others for their tragic failure to keep our province safe,” added Sabir. “Madu’s senior officials directed police not to enforce public health orders, and he looked the other way for months while anti-maskers marched through the downtown cores of our major cities, putting thousands of people at risk. Now he wants to blame the media.

“Alberta journalists are Albertans, and they want to see this pandemic end as quickly and safely as all of us. Madu must personally apologize for these comments immediately.”

CTV News requested clarification from the minister and an interview regarding the Facebook comments. A spokesperson for the ministry issued a statement to CTV News Monday afternoon stating Madu stood behind his social media posts and would not be apologizing.

“The Minister was referring to the increasing tendency of different groups, including the NDP, to exploit the pandemic for their own political purposes. We see this every day with the NDP’s overcooked and incendiary rhetoric both in the legislative assembly and on social media. The Minister won’t apologize for stating the obvious.”

EDMONTON — Organizations and residents in St. Alberta continue to help residents affected by the massive fire Thursday evening at a retirement home in that community.

The blaze at Citadel Mews West left more than 100 people homeless.

READ MORE: 110 seniors homeless after fire causes ‘excessive damage’ to St. Albert retirement complex 

The City of St. Albert has partnered with the Canadian Red Cross to get donations to victims of the fire.

Local eyewear providers are offering free glasses and lenses to anyone who may have lost theirs in the fire.

Douglas Reinbold, a consultant with MDO Opticians, told CTV News Edmonton in an interview that he immediately wanted to help.

“When we saw the devastation of the fire we thought, what is it that we can we do to help out?”

“As a senior myself, the first thing I do in the morning is reach for my glasses,” he added. “We thought, oh my goodness, all of these people likely didn’t make it with their eyewear.”

MDO Opticians has been a local business for over 40 years in St. Albert and has helped dozens of people so far.

Reinbold said the entire optics community rallied to help seniors as FYI Doctors and Optiks International assisted in fitting seniors in new frames and lenses following the fire.

Affected seniors could also visit St. Albert Alliance Church Sunday to receive toiletries and gently used clothing, bedding, and shoes that had been donated.

Mike Sotski, a pastor at the church, said the church started collecting donations Friday and Saturday “non-stop.”

“We were overwhelmed,” Sotski said. “There was a continual stream of clothes coming in.”

The church anticipated that 20 to 25 seniors would drop by the church to collect some much-needed items. Sotski said some donated items were also taken to seniors who are being temporarily housed in other Christenson communities.

Sotski added that over $8,000 in cash and gift cards was also collected by the church that will be given to seniors in need.

“For us really it’s just about practically serving and loving our community,” he said. “We just want to give them some comfortable things.

“We are so grateful and thankful for the community response from St. Albert, Edmonton, and the Capital Region,” he added.

Jill Burt, corporate chaplain for Christenson Communities, said the donations are going a long way to support the displaced seniors.

“A lot of residents came out with just what they had on their backs,” she said. “We just are so grateful that the community at-large came together.” 

EDMONTON — A grass fire that burned approximately three hectares Saturday north of Fort McMurray is under investigation.

According to Wood Buffalo RCMP, at approximately 4:22 p.m. firefighters and police responded to a large grass fire moving towards the forested area on the southbound side of Highway 63 and north of the Parsons Creek overpass.

The fire was quickly contained, RCMP said in a press release sent Sunday.

Alberta Wildfire says the grass fire is currently under control and will be completely extinguished.

Mounties say that there were no injuries sustained and no property damage reported to them.

They add that while the cause of the fire is still under investigation, some witnesses spotted several off-road vehicles nearby indicating the grass fire may have started due to a combination of heat from the vehicles and the dry conditions.

The Fort McMurray area is currently under a fire advisory and officials ask residents to be mindful when discarding cigarette butts, operating off road vehicles, and keeping backyard fires under control.

A wildfire burned about one-third of Slave Lake in northern Alberta in May 2011. Nearly 400 homes and businesses, including an apartment complex, were reduced to ash and rubble when fierce winds whipped flames through town with little warning.

Here are five things we’ve learned about that fire 10 years ago:

How did the wildfire happen?

The Slave Lake wildfire burned through the town from May 14 to May 16, 2011.

Officials with the Alberta government announced in November 2011 that an unknown arsonist recklessly or deliberately ignited the forest fire.

Damages were pegged at $700 million – one of the country’s costliest disasters.

How long did it take to clean up?

Mayor Tyler Warman says many milestones were reached within two years.

The government centre and about 80 per cent of homes were rebuilt. But Warman says it took another four years to finish roads and sidewalks.

“We waited a couple years for people to finish construction.”

Warman says there was a list of projects and they slowly checked them off.

“When I look around the community, I see things rebuilt. I see new investment. I see new businesses.”

READ MORE: Ten years later: Former Slave Lake mayor remembers wildfire that burned through town

How did it affect the town’s residents?

Warman says the population hasn’t changed a whole lot since the fire.

The No. 1 factor that saved the community, he says, was temporary housing that was built for residents while they rebuilt their homes.

“It was the difference between success and failure. Without it, we would have been decimated.”

Warman says some single people and young couples who were living in the apartment complex left, but school enrolment numbers were steady the next fall.

“There was a pretty strong indication that the people were still here.”

Research done after the fire showed some residents with psychological stress symptoms – particularly children. The study suggested children involved in disasters be offered counselling and assistance in recovery.

What have we learned about wildfires?

Mike Flannigan, a renewable resources professor at the University of Alberta, says the Slave Lake fire has left a legacy.

“Fire management in Canada is among the best in the world and Alberta is among the best in Canada,” he says. “What has become clear is that events like Slave Lake aren’t isolated events.

“One of the politicians of the day was in the paper saying it was a one-off. It was a fluke. It won’t happen again. I said the day after … expect more events like this, unfortunately.’

“It’s all about the extreme conditions.”

He says the fires in Slave Lake, Fort McMurray, Alta., and Kelowna, B.C., led to politicians paying attention.

Did anything change afterward?

Flannigan says there has been more federal funding for wildfire research.

“Things have changed, but we still need to do more,” he says. “It’s not going away with climate change.”

He says more structures will be at risk if development continues in the boreal forest.

Warman adds those developments need to be prepared for emergencies and for recovery after disasters.

“A good plan is better than a quick plan.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2021.

Karina Pillay remembers everything about the wildfire. She remembers the chaos the day it hit. The fireballs falling around the town’s government building. The traffic gridlock as flames blocked the roads.

“It was such a life-changing experience,” the former Slave Lake mayor said in an interview from Calgary, where she now works as a family doctor.

“You just can’t forget those vivid images in your head.”

Pillay was in her third term as mayor when the wildfire burned about one-third of the northern Alberta town 10 years ago this month.

Nearly 400 homes and businesses, including an apartment complex, were reduced to ash and rubble when fierce winds whipped the fire through town with little warning.

“Things changed so quickly,” recalled Pillay, who noted she was meeting with the fire chief and other council members at the newly built government building to talk about the fire when it hit town.

“Someone said, ‘Your roof is on fire.”’

As everyone fled the building, fireballs were falling from the sky, Pillay said.

Most residents had just minutes to flee. Communications went down and traffic became gridlocked.

“Lots of things started to fail for us,” said Pillay. “Thankfully we were able to get everyone out.”

No one from town was injured other than scrapes and minor burns, but 2,000 people were left homeless. The government building, including the library, was lost.

Damages were pegged at $700 million – one of the country’s costliest disasters.

CTV News Edmonton File Photo

Pillay, who had lived in Slave Lake since she was a baby, spent the next two years working around the clock along with many others to start rebuilding the community.

“We didn’t sleep much,” she said with a laugh. “Long hours, lots of meetings. It was pretty intense. Pretty intense at first. I don’t think I had a break in a year.

“Our council was unbelievable. Half my council lost their homes, and they were still there in meetings, on the night they lost their homes, right from the get-go.”

CTV News Edmonton File Photo

About two months after the fire, Prince William and his wife Kate, who were on a cross-Canada tour, made an impromptu visit to show their support.

“They were so genuine and caring and personable,” said Pillay, who took them on a tour of the damage.

The Alberta government announced in November 2011 that an unknown arsonist had recklessly or deliberately ignited the forest fire. No one was ever charged.

Pillay left to attend medical school a few months before Alberta’s 2013 municipal elections.

“We had all the good planning in place and I didn’t want to have any regrets in life,” she said. “In the back of my mind, medicine has always been something that fascinated me.

“I studied for that entrance exam when I was mayor in the summer.”

She did her medical school training as her hometown continued to rebuild.

Tyler Warman, who was a town councillor and volunteer firefighter in 2011, was elected as the next mayor and still holds that position.

“It’s the whole mentality of let’s roll up our sleeves and get it done,” he said.

He said recovery was in good shape two years after the fire, but it took several more years before everything started to change.

Crews work to shut off gas and water in a burned-out neighbourhood in Slave Lake, Alta., on Wednesday, May 18, 2011. Almost all of Slave Lakes’s 7,000 residents fled Sunday in the face of a forest fire that eventually destroyed about a third of the town (The Canadian Press/Ian Jackson)

“Recovery is a long-distance game and it takes a lot out of you.”

Warman said he couldn’t be more proud of how the community handled the crisis.

“Within a couple of years, literally 80 per cent of the homes were rebuilt,” he said. “We waited a couple years to let everyone do the construction … then we had $30 million of road rehab and sidewalk rehab.

“Around year six, we looked back and said we’re checking all the boxes here.”

Warman said there are still signs of the fire – smaller trees, newer buildings – but the town has mostly rebounded.

There were some long-term effects. Researchers have looked at everything from how children responded to the fire to ways to better prepare towns near forests to deal with fire safety.

Slave Lake’s population has dropped slightly since the fire, but Warman said most residents came back – at least until some left years later during an economic downturn in the oil and gas industry.

“You lose some great people along the way.”

Pillay, who’s now on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, said she’s in touch with her friends who live in Slave Lake and they often reminisce about the community’s resilience.

“What we did was just incredible,” she said, “to get our citizens back into that community and, then after, the hard work we did.”

Dr. Karina Pillay, the former mayor of Slave Lake, is shown at her medical clinic in Calgary, Alta., Friday, April 16, 2021. Pillay remembers everything about the Slave Lake wildfire (The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh)

She hasn’t been back to see the completion of projects, but said she’ll always have fond memories – and a constant reminder – of her time as Slave Lake’s mayor.

“Council, as my parting gift, gave me an engraved stethoscope. It has my name on it,” said Pillay.

“I still use it … so I have a piece of Slave Lake with me all the time.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2021.