Lightning strikes spark new fires in northern Sask., stretching resources thin
Embers from wildfires destroy iconic Robertson Trading in La Ronge
Lightning strikes have sparked three new fires in northern Saskatchewan in the past day, as firefighters from across Canada and the United States struggle to contain wildfires feeding off tinder-dry vegetation and howling winds.
Steve Roberts, vice-president of operations with the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), said Wednesday afternoon that there were 24 fires actively burning in the province, three more than Tuesday's update.
Nine were not contained.
The largest of those fires, the Shoe fire in the Narrow Hills near Lower Fishing Lake, has grown to 471,000 hectares, an increase of about 60,000 hectares in one day. Meanwhile, the Pisew fire near La Ronge has grown to 141,000 hectares.
Roberts said there was some light rain in the north and west in the past 24 hours, but it hurt rather than helped.
"Unfortunately that has come with some lightning, so we have some new fire starts," Roberts said.
So far this year, there have been 243 wildfires in Saskatchewan. That's up from 172 last year at this time and nearly double the five-year-average of 135.
Roberts said somewhere between 10,000 and 15,000 people have been forced to evacuate their homes, driving south to stay in shelters, hotels and sometimes their cars.
Roberts said this year is unlike anything he's seen, with the number of fires, the complexity and the demand for resources from neighbouring provinces also dealing with mass evacuations and uncontrolled wildfires.
"If we were the only player in town it would be easy to get an extra 100 firefighters, or two extra water bombers or an extra helicopter," Roberts said during a media briefing Wednesday.
"Multiple targets for resources like water bombers will happen at the same time."
Roberts said the province desperately needs rain to squelch the flames, but not the light showers some areas received Tuesday.
"We need rain. And we need a lot of it. A light shower is not going to help us because it will probably be accompanied by lightning."
Roberts said Saskatchewan has been getting equipment and firefighters from across Canada and the United States, with help arriving from nearly every province and Alaska, Oregon and Arizona.
He said that anyone in an evacuation zone needs to listen to the warnings and leave before it's too late.
Iconic La Ronge business burns, hundreds of priceless Indigenous artifacts destroyed
Hundreds of priceless Indigenous artifacts have been destroyed, burned inside the shuttered Robertson Trading building after embers from a nearby wildfire sparked a fire Tuesday in downtown La Ronge, Sask.
"History has gone up in smoke, and many historical pictures of LLRIB (Lac La Ronge Indian Band) elders, including my grampa's and gramma's pictures … all the trappers' history, stuffed animals, handicrafts, and fur trade history … gone," Gord Beatty wrote to the CBC.
Robertson Trading was one of two businesses that burned before firefighters contained the blaze. The Rona store next door was also destroyed.
"Fortunately, we've had so many fire departments from down south coming to help … and they were able to contain it," Mayor Joe Hordyski told host Stephanie Massicotte Wednesday on CBC Radio's Saskatoon Morning.
"But if the fire would have went down a little farther and come across, it would have been catastrophic."
Even though Robertson Trading officially closed Dec. 31, 2023, it had been opening periodically since then.
In a social media post Wednesday morning, the business operators said the destruction of the building caused a "profound sense of loss," as it was still housing the Robertson family's collection of Indigenous art and historical artifacts.
"To name a few items, the beaded moose hide jackets and moccasins, the birch bark baskets, the antler carvings, the original paintings, etc., represent thousands of hours of handwork done by talented Indigenous artists and craftspeople, and are absolutely irreplaceable," the post said.
Residents of La Ronge, Air Ronge, the Lac La Ronge Indian Reserve and everywhere within a 20-kilometre radius were evacuated Monday as the Pisew fire approached from the north. On Tuesday, another notice went out for all non-essential personnel to leave town. Firefighters and an ambulance crew are among the few people left in town, the mayor said.
Hordyski said he's staying to support them.
"I couldn't in good conscience allow our firefighters to come in and battle, and desert them. I would not do that," he said. "I'm going to do whatever I can to make sure they're fed and housed, and a pat on the back when they need it."
Hordyski said conditions were not favourable on Tuesday for larger aircraft to support the firefighting efforts, with wind gusts up to 87 kilometres an hour. A helicopter was able to help contain the fire in the town to the two businesses, though.
Conditions were looking a bit better Wednesday morning. He said he hopes that with weaker winds, planes can get up in the sky and knock down the fire perimeter.
When asked what he wants evacuees from the La Ronge area to know, Hordyski said to remember that they'll get through it together.
"I want them to know that there's been a lot of hard-working people that's been working day and night to protect their community and we'll continue to do that and do the utmost we can, so they can return to their homes," he said.
Homes lost
Lac La Ronge Indian Band Chief Tammy Cook-Searson said some homes have been lost to wildfire in the communities of Sucker River and Hall Lake.
She said on Tuesday afternoon that 13 structures — 11 existing homes and two under construction — burned in Sucker River, north of La Ronge, and five homes burned in Hall Lake, west of La Ronge.
"We have fires everywhere and the fires are not letting up at all," she told host Peter Mills on CBC Radio's Afternoon Edition.
Joe Ratt, a volunteer firefighter and resident of Sucker River, worked to try and contain the fire, but said he has never faced one like this before.
"It's unbelievable what this fire's done," Ratt said.
"I know the fire base in La Ronge feels helpless. What can you do for a fire like this? It's one of the most destructive fires I've ever seen in my life," Ratt said.
Cook-Searson said the band is also dealing with the communities of Stanley Mission and Grandmother's Bay not having power or communications, other than satellite phones or through Starlink.
She said the wildfires are "devastating."
Residents of Denare Beach watched through their door cameras Monday as one-by-one their homes burned to the ground.
Sandi Woods and Kirk Tait, owners of The Ridge on Amisk Resort, a lodge at Denare Beach, confirmed in a Facebook post that their entire resort was destroyed in the Wolf fire.
"It is with great sadness we announce the complete loss of The Ridge on Amisk Resort to the Wolf wildfire that engulfed our beautiful little village of Denare Beach."
'Pretty dire situations'
It's not just active firefighters who are travelling to communities like La Ronge to help out.
Cliff Buettner was only two days into his retirement when he was called back to help fight Saskatchewan's raging wildfires.
"This is far beyond anything that I've experienced in my 40 years," said the former director of forestry and emergency protective services for the Prince Albert Grand Council.
"I've been in some pretty dire situations and this is some of the worst I've seen."
Saskatchewan has faced significant losses due to the unpredictability of this wildfire season, Buettner said, adding that the speed and intensity of the fires have not given communities much time to react.
A Facebook post from the Northern Village of Denare Beach Tuesday morning, for instance, confirmed that fire had destroyed everything south of Ninth Avenue to the reserve.
Brenda Roberts with the Prince Albert Grand Council, who has been helping to co-ordinate the training, said she's had over 100 applicants so far — one as young as 17.
"We've also had calls from people who have heavy equipment experience, Class 1A drivers, heavy duty mechanics — just to say that they're available," she said.
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With files from Saskatoon Morning, Afternoon Edition