Northern Sask. mayor calls province's wildfire evacuation response 'disgusting'
Julie Baschuk says people are hungry and sleeping in tents because of 'confusing' response
One week after residents of Air Ronge left the northern Saskatchewan community, fleeing wildfires and adhering to mandatory evacuation orders, the mayor says many of them still don't have a place to sleep.
Air Ronge Mayor Julie Baschuk said some residents are messaging her saying they're hungry and don't have enough money for food. Others are sick and don't know where to go for help.
"It is Monday, June 9, and our residents have been given the run-around," Baschuk said.
"They're being turned away and they're being told there is nothing they can be helped with. We are talking thousands of displaced people from our communities up here in the Lac La Ronge region.
"It's disgusting to see how our people are being treated."
The situation prompted Baschuk to write a letter to Premier Scott Moe, demanding that the province provide a clear and consistent plan for evacuees.
She has also compiled a list of evacuees who have messaged saying they haven't received emergency services to pass along to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA).
That list is now several pages long.
"They tried to find some sort of support and relief and are getting nothing. We have people sleeping in vehicles for the past week, sleeping in backyards and tents."
Many are paying out-of-pocket for food and a place to stay.
"We've set up people to basically fall into the depths of poverty the way that this is going," said Baschuk.
Baschuk said she's had "multiple" calls and meetings with the SPSA, which is co-ordinating the emergency response.
She said the SPSA and Moe are well aware many evacuees aren't getting access to food, clothing and shelter.
"People are scattered everywhere."
Baschuk said the problems stem from confusion about who is running the emergency response, and whether there are different services for people living on reserve or off reserve.
"We're being told a mish-mash of messaging from both lead agencies," she said, referring to the SPSA and the Red Cross.
"We ourselves as leaders are getting the run-around, quite frankly. And if we ourselves don't have that proper information … how do we expect our residents to figure this system out?"
More than 10,000 evacuees are being supported by the Red Cross and 860 are being supported by the SPSA.
"I would say no evacuees should be turned away from supports that they need," said Tim McLeod, Saskatchewan's public safety minister, in an update on Monday.
"Anytime you're looking at an emergency like this, there's going to be a lot of communication that needs to happen, and everybody's doing their level best to make sure that people are directed where they should be directed and get the resources that they need."
Kim MacLean, senior director for response operations for the Red Cross, said in a previous interview that she's heard people are getting moved to different evacuation locations, depending on if they are on-reserve or off-reserve.
MacLean said the Red Cross was called in to assist First Nations and is providing a framework of emergency services, including securing hotel rooms and evacuation beds, but is not running the emergency response.
Some evacuees allowed back to Pelican Narrows
While thousands of northern residents are still living in hotel rooms and evacuation centres across the province, some are being allowed to return home.
On Sunday, Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation (PBCN) issued an advisory allowing healthy adults to return to Pelican Narrows.
The PBCN declared a state of emergency and issued a mandatory evacuation notice for Pelican Narrows on May 27, as the Pelican 2 wildfire grew dangerously close to the community.
The PBCN has arranged for buses to pick up evacuees from Saskatoon hotels Monday and Tuesday, but leadership said not all residents should return.
Elizabeth Michel, a PBCN band councillor, said the following people should delay their return to Pelican Narrows:
- Parents with children under five.
- Pregnant mothers.
- People with respiratory or cardiac conditions.
- Home-care clients and elders.
- Anyone with health issues.
For those who do return, it will be a while before things return to normal.
"There is a checkpoint and security measures they all have to follow," Michel said.
She said anyone returning is asked to take a two-week supply of medication and understand there will be limited medical services.
There's also a boil-water advisory in effect.
SaskTel said Monday that it had repaired the majority of damage done to its infrastructure by the wildfires. It said all SaskTel services in northern Saskatchewan were back up as of 10 a.m. CST Monday.
SPSA in talks with federal government
McLeod said the province is "optimistic" that more communities will be able to return in the days ahead.
"We're now turning a corner," McLeod said.
As of Monday afternoon, 33 communities remained on evacuation orders. Weyakwin and Pelican Narrows were the only communities that have had their evacuation orders lifted.
As 25 wildfires continue to burn in the province, McLeod said he has been in "daily contact" with both the federal minister of public safety and the federal minister of emergency management on how to align the needs of the province with the resources available.
"This isn't a situation where we're not asking for assistance or they're not offering assistance. It's simply a situation where we need the needs that we have to align with what they're offering," he said.
The province has asked for the federal government to provide two base camps to support working crews as they go back into communities that are rebuilding and assist in clean-up, McLeod said. Tents for sheltering up to 200 people have also been requested.
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