No relief in sight from wildfires as 20 Sask. communities under evacuation orders

Aishwarya Dudha · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 01, 2025 2:33 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

Wildfires successful Saskatchewan are expected to proceed to turn aggressively during the adjacent fewer days, fuelled by precocious temperatures, winds and adust conditions. And there's no motion of alleviation successful sight, according to the latest update from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency.

"This volition drastically interaction our quality to incorporate immoderate of these fires and volition really origin immoderate of these fires to turn successful size implicit the adjacent play of time," Steve Roberts, SPSA vice-president of operations, said astatine a quality league Sunday.

As of Sunday afternoon, 15 fires were burning successful the province, down from 17 due to the fact that 2 fires person merged and immoderate tiny fires person been contained, the SPSA said. 

Roberts said 20 communities are nether an evacuation bid arsenic of 1 p.m. CST Sunday. The latest evacuation orders person been in Sturgeon Landing and Timber Bay. 

Thousands of radical person already been displaced from their homes successful communities including Hall Lake, Pelican Narrows, Creighton, Denare Beach and Weyakwin. 

Fires proceed to interaction highways, restricting entree to immoderate communities. Roberts said closures are happening constantly, and radical should cheque the Highway Hotline for the latest updates. 

He said arsenic of Sunday, 80 values, including houses and cabins, person been mislaid to the wildfires. 

At a quality league successful Saskatoon connected Sunday, Premier Scott Moe said portion provinces successful Canada stock resources successful situations similar these wildfires, a nationalist concern successful shared occurrence warring forces should beryllium considered. 

"Should we person a nationalist concern into, for argument's sake, five, 10 oregon 20 aerial tankers that could past spell into that process to beryllium shared wherever they mightiness beryllium needed successful immoderate peculiar year?" Moe said. 

"Should we nationally arsenic Canadians adhd to that assets excavation truthful that each provinces and territories — and adjacent successful fairness into the U.S. successful immoderate years successful California, we've seen immoderate challenging years — be capable to gully from that arsenic a planetary partner?" 

WATCH | Sask. premier says resources are stretched arsenic wildfires rage:

Latest evacuations

Moe said connected Sunday greeting that Sturgeon Landing has been evacuated. The assemblage is portion of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation, successful the province's northeast.

Also connected Sunday, the Northern Hamlet of Timber Bay issued an alert that residents indispensable statesman evacuating immediately. 

A adjacent wildfire is fast-moving and threatening the community, the alert said. The assemblage is connected the eastbound enactment of Montreal Lake, northbound of Prince Albert.

The alert advised radical to self-evacuate utilizing highways 969 and 2, and to spell to the Meridian Inn and Suites successful Regina. The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency "will beryllium determination to invited you," it said. 

WATCH | The occurrence upwind signifier everyone is watching:

Carl Hennie, a unpaid firefighter successful Timber Bay, said things changed precise quickly. 

"Fast, it happened beauteous fast. The fire's mode eastbound of us, but the winds shifted," Hennie said successful an interrogation Sunday. 

He besides said that Timber Bay's lone occurrence motortruck is broken. 

"It hasn't worked for a fewer years present due to the fact that there's nary backing to hole it.… It is concerning. We're conscionable fortunate we haven't had a location wherever radical and kids [are] successful there, fortunate truthful far," helium said. 

Hennie said the pumps froze up a portion ago and the full motortruck broke down — and being a tiny community, there is lone capable wealth for operational costs. 

Pre-evacuation for Molanosa

Also connected Sunday, Montreal Lake Cree Nation declared a pre-evacuation announcement for radical successful Molanosa, a small, isolated assemblage astir 150 kilometres northbound of Prince Albert.

The First Nation said the alert is owed to precocious winds from the westbound that were expected to origin dense fume and perchance propulsion a wildfire successful the portion person to the community. The Ditch02 occurrence is burning westbound of Molanosa.

Any assemblage subordinate who chooses to permission astatine this constituent is urged to spell to the Montreal Lake Child and Family Services building, the designated gathering constituent and bid centre. The set said evacuees person to spell determination to receive services. 

Cabin burned down 

Geoffrey Bird from Montreal Lake Cree Nation was portion of the unpaid firefighting squad that stayed backmost successful the assemblage successful 2015 erstwhile a wildfire forced thousands to fly for a agelong time. 

It's déjà vu for him arsenic helium waits for orders from the authorities. "My cabins burned down connected East Road," helium said. 

"That's towards Candle Lake.…That's wherever my ma had built a cabin, and I inherited that cabin. I haven't gone to spot it yet," helium said. 

Bird said that nary 1 is allowed to spell to that country close present arsenic it is excessively dangerous. 

'It conscionable went instantly dark'

Lisa Powder, from Weyakwin, evacuated to Montreal Lake Cree Nation 4 days ago. She said that erstwhile she and her household left, the occurrence was highly adjacent to the community.  

"It was truly close, and we had to get successful buses and get implicit here. You could hardly spot anything. It conscionable went instantly dark, from sunshine to darkness," Powder said. 

"I interest astir the homes, the structures, the cabins, the animals and the firefighters … and our pets. Our pets are each there," she said. 

"It's scary. We don't cognize erstwhile we aftermath up successful the morning, if there's thing near but [we have] assurance successful the boys backmost location and they'll prevention everything."

SaskTel outages 

SaskTel internet, wireless and landline services are unavailable successful Deschambault Lake and Pelican Narrows successful the province's northeast, according to a connection Sunday. 

"Additionally, SaskTel anticipates these services volition besides go unavailable successful Jan Lake sometime this afternoon," the connection said. 

SaskTel said that services volition stay unavailable until commercialized powerfulness is restored oregon until it is harmless for SaskTel crews to spell into impacted areas. 

Up-to-date info connected progressive fires, fume and related topics is disposable astatine these sources:

• Interactive Sask. progressive occurrence map.
• Fire information map.
• Environment and Climate Change Canada upwind alerts.
• Sask. Highway Hotline.
• Smoke forecast.
• Air quality.
• Tracking wildfires crossed Canada.