Drumheller Fire Chief Bill Bachynski told The Mail, according to information received so far an oil spill which occurred upstream from the Dickson Dam has been contained, and there is no threat to communities downstream.

A leak was discovered on June 15 in a sweet crude pipeline licensed to Pembina Pipelines, about five kilometres north of the Town of Sundre. The line was running under the Red Deer River. Between 75 and 125 barrels of oil were spilled into the river, according to an Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) release.

An oil sheen has been detected on Glennifer Lake, about 30 kilometres downstream from the site of the leak.

"We will continue to monitor the situation closely,” said Bachynski.”

Cheryl Robb of Alberta Environment says a boom has been set up at the mouth of the river, which has been successful in stopping much of the spill. A second boom has also been set up near the Dickson dam. Helicopter inspections of the river are being done, and water samples have been taken.

"Pembina has been walking the banks to monitor for impact on wildlife, right now there isn't any," said Robb.

Davis Sheremata of the ERCB, says they will be launching an investigation into the incident.

It is obvious once again that Relay For Life is contagious as the totals for this year’s event hits a quarter of a million dollars.

After a wildly successful inaugural Relay For Life in Drumheller last year, organizers were modest in their goals and projections. They were astounded to find this year they raised $250,000 and counting.

“I thought if we raised between $150,000 and $200,000 that would be spectacular,” said event chair Merridy Martin “When you consider $250,000 with 400 participants compared to $430,000 with almost 1,000 participants (last year’s numbers), I think we did pretty darn good.”