Fifth Canadian Soldier Dies of Injuries From the CFB Wainwright Fire as 24 Remain in Hospital

A fifth Canadian soldier has died from injuries suffered when a wind-driven grass fire swept through a training exercise at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in Alberta last month, the Canadian Armed Forces said Saturday.

Pte. William Douglas Dal Bianco, a member of the 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, died Friday while receiving treatment at a hospital in Ontario, officials said. The military said his death was the result of injuries he sustained in the Oct. 17 fire.

Gen. Jennie Carignan, the chief of the defence staff, said the forces were mourning the loss and would keep supporting the families and the wider military community. "We are heartbroken," she said, according to CTV News. Prime Minister Mark Carney, Defence Minister David McGuinty and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre also offered condolences, Global News reported. Carney said the soldiers had been training to defend their country.

According to the military, 24 members injured in the fire remain in hospital and 14 have been released. Four soldiers were killed on the day of the fire, and dozens more were rushed to hospitals across the region. In the first days after the blaze, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said 39 patients were being treated, at least 19 of them in critical condition, CTV News reported.

Pte. Dal Bianco died nearly four weeks after the fire, and his death is the first in the toll since the four killed on the day of the blaze.

Military officials have said the fire began on an automatic grenade launcher range during routine training, in an area firefighters could not safely enter, CBC News reported. Maj.-Gen. Wade Rutland has acknowledged that base officials knew about the grass fire for several hours but believed it was contained enough to continue training before strong winds pushed it toward soldiers, Global News reported.

Three investigations are under way: a criminal investigation involving military police and the RCMP, a fire marshal's review, and a Canadian Armed Forces Board of Inquiry. The board is examining whether training policies were appropriate and why the fire was not treated as a threat as the winds rose. Saturday's announcement did not include any new findings about how the fire started.

Canada is one of America's closest allies, and its soldiers train for the same hard missions ours do. The Wainwright fire is a painful reminder that the men and women who wear the uniform accept real danger long before they ever see a battlefield, and that their commanders owe them clear answers when training turns deadly.

The families of five young soldiers are now waiting for those answers. The Board of Inquiry and the criminal investigation have not said when they will report. Liberty Bell Report will follow the investigations and the recovery of the soldiers still in hospital.