Army firefighters arrive in Prince Albert as more evacuees prepare to head home

The Prince Albert Armoury at the Exhibition grounds will also be used to deploy military staff that come in and then disperse across the north.

The Armoury at the Prince Albert Exhibition Grounds. (Susan McNeil/paNOW)

Powalinsky said they will leave the Armoury before the Exhibition’s Summer Fair starts on August 6.

The provincial government asked for federal help last week and Ottawa has promised to send up to 300 personnel.

They were not needed earlier as they are only trained to Type 3 level and the fires had not yet died down enough for the work they will do.

The province has been looking for more Type 3 firefighters, especially from Indigenous partner agencies but, given the scope of the land that has burned or is currently burning, there were not enough.

On Monday, the community of Beauval announced their mandatory evacuation will end on July 30, but the state of emergency will last until August 6, which allows Priority 1 and 2 evacuees to remain evacuated.

Buses for those who need transport have been arranged for Wednesday morning.

The Emergency Operations Centre for Beauval is advising those returning that their community is set up as a central fire response base and is hosting firefighters from across the globe.

A curfew is in place for the whole community for 11 pm to 6 am. Non-essential people and vehicles will not be allowed to travel around during those hours.

All returnees, including those that drove themselves out, are asked to let the EOC know they are returning so they know who is in the community.

As of Tuesday, July 29, Canoe Lake/Canoe Narrows, La Plonge, Jans Bay, Patuanak/English River, Ramsey Bay, Lac La Plonge and Little Amyot Lake remain under active evacuation orders.

Residents can check for planned changes with their local leaders or EOC. Four other communities have Priority 1 and 2 individuals evacuated and receiving support.

The Parks Canada pre-evacuation alert for Prince Albert National Park remains in effect and a bulletin issued Tuesday afternoon said that the Buhl Fire can still cause emergency situations for the public.

Elk Ridge and McPhee Lake do not have any alerts or orders in effect.

Some parts of the park remain closed, primarily in the northern area, including the Overflow Campground and the Beartrap Helipad.

A fire ban remains in effect in the park and, while some were lifted in other areas of Saskatchewan, continuing lack of rain has led to reinstatements. People wanting to know if they can light their fire pit can check the SPSA website or their local municipality.

A provincial fire ban from the SPSA encompasses the area north of the forest boundary up to the Churchill River.

The Buhl Fire is less than four kilometres from Ramsey Bay with Montreal Lake, the next nearest community under threat, 12.5 kilometres away.

Samaritan’s Purse, an emergency charity organization, is on the ground in Denare Beach, one of the communities hardest hit by this year’s wildfires.

About 200 homes and structures were burned last month in the community by the Wolf Fire.

Some of the help Samaritan’s Purse provides is possession recovery along with experienced and highly trained team members that can manage operations and organize volunteers.

As of July 29, 59 fires remain active in Saskatchewan and 405 have started this year, about 20 per cent higher than the five-year average of 330.

Of the 59 active fires, five are contained, 11 are not contained, 27 are ongoing assessment and 16 are protecting values.

The largest fire is the Shoe Fire in Lower Fishing Lake, which is just over 550,000 hectares.

Canadian military vehicles are at Carlton High School in Prince Albert. (Susan McNeil/paNOW)

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com

On Bluesky: @susanmcneil.bsky.social

by Susan McNeil

Army firefighters arrive in Prince Albert as more evacuees prepare to head home

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