An Edmonton woman has tried to push out memories of slick roads and white-out conditions after she was involved in a 16-vehicle pileup last December.

“It’s terrifying. I still cannot drive that stretch of the road,” Michele Demyen said. “I feel my hands start to shake; I get really scared.”

Her frightening experience is now at the forefront after she unexpectedly received a bill for $930 for non-medical fire department charges associated with the collision.

She said she didn’t even require help from firefighters, adding she had paid a tow truck driver to remove her vehicle from the ditch.

RCMP said 16 vehicles were involved, one person was killed and no one was charged.

Demyen’s letter explained everyone involved in the pileup is sharing the cost of more than $15,000.

“I was quite surprised that the government is asking the public to pay for what has always been seen as a public service.

“I’ve never had an encounter where the public has been asked to reimburse the fire department’s expenses,” she said.

Why some drivers get billed

In Alberta, any municipal fire department that attends a crash scene on a provincial highway can try to recoup costs by billing Alberta’s Ministry of Transportation.

The government's insurance company to recover the cost from the drivers involved.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada said it happens often, but it is normally worked out by insurance providers.

“Some of the bills get paid behind the scenes and may not be sent directly to that particular person if they have an insurance representing assisting them with the actual claim,” Rob Dupuis explained.

Demyan never made a claim because she said her vehicle was not damaged and she wasn’t hurt.

The province said it is rare that an individual is contacted directly for payment.

“We will be reaching out to the individual and will walk through options for getting the fee waived, given the circumstances,” a spokesperson for Alberta Transportation said in a statement.

Demyen said she is pleased by the government’s response and believes the province should set up an emergency fund for these types of castrophic crashes where no one is at fault to prevent victims from getting stuck wiht a similiar bill.

With files from Dan Grummett