Canadian Armed Forces private dies from injuries in grass fire

Pte William Douglas Dal Bianco died on Friday from injuries he suffered in a grass fire at a military training area, according to BBC News. The Canadian Armed Forces said he had been receiving medical care in Ontario before his death.

His death follows a fire on 17 October at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, a military base in Alberta. Members of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group were carrying out live-fire training, which uses live ammunition, when the blaze broke out. It ignited during the exercise and spread across the base, and four people were initially killed.

Strong winds caused the fire to spread rapidly. Military officials said it moved across a kilometre in a matter of seconds.

Base firefighters knew about the fire but could not tackle it. The area was a danger zone where unexploded explosives could be present, so they were unable to move in.

An investigation found the fire was likely sparked by a grenade launcher fired on the base's grenade range.

In total, 38 military personnel were injured in the fire. As of Saturday, 24 of them remained in hospital and 14 had been released.