A photo of the Cloverdale Fire near Prince Albert in May. (Submitted photo/Curtis Wailing)

By Jeff D’Andrea

Wildfires in Saskatchewan

SPSA highlight three wildfires of concern near communities

Jul 8, 2021 | 4:00 PM

Among the 30 active wildfires burning in the province right now, the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) is sounding the alarm on three that are near communities.

During a teleconference on Thursday, the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) highlighted the Lock Fire near Dillon in the west part of the province, the Stallard Fire near Stony Rapids and Black Lake in the far north, and the Pothole Fire near Stanley Mission, northeast of La Ronge.

The fires vary in size. The Lock Fire is by far the largest in 5,190 hectares, while the Pothole Fire is over 360 and the Stallard Fire is 18 hectares. No mandatory evacuations or alerts have been made by the SPSA.

SPSA’s vice president of operations Steve Roberts said his message to the communities surrounding the fires of concern and the rest of province is about “being prepared and being cautious.”

To be set for an emergency, Roberts presented a checklist during Thursday’s media conference.

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“Are you prepared to stay if your access was cut off for a couple days? Are you prepared to self-support yourself? Do you know what you need to take if you were asked to evacuate because of an emergency threat? Do you have all of your documents and your key contacts all done?” Roberts said.

Being cautious about fires has also been handled through fire bans. The SPSA extended its provincial fire ban until at least Monday, including no open burning, no prescribed fire and no fireworks on provincial crown land. Roberts also said many communities have also made their own fire bans to coincide with the provincial ban.

Roberts said there are resources and staff to deal with these and other fires that may come up.

Although the unusually hot summer has caused issues and increased fires around the province, Roberts said the increase has not been overly significant. So far, there have been 232 fires, 30 more than the five-year average of 202.

The weather could be a factor this weekend as conditions are expected to remain hot and dry. And even in cases when rain is expected, Roberts said that will likely be accompanied by thunder and lightning this weekend, which raises concerns of more fires starting.

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jeff.dandrea@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW