TORONTO – It’s another hellish weekend in many parts of Canada, and not only because of the summer heat but also, and above all, due to the wildfires. While we are writing this article, the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) website – which is updated in real time, here – reports 500 active fires, all included (from those out of control to the contained ones) and many of these have created and are creating huge problems to the population.
About 700 people in a small village in northern Saskatchewan were stranded on Friday after a fire destroyed the only road leading to their community: Patuanak, a village about 425 kilometres north of Saskatoon and about 90 kilometres north of Beauval (recently evacuated), is usually only accessible by land via Highway 918. But the highway was cut off by the fire, which prevented people from leaving and blocked direct access to supplies and emergency teams. “People are essentially safe, but they are isolated” said Candyce Paul, emergency management coordinator for the English River First Nation, of which Patuanak is a part. The nearest fire is still about 60 kilometres away.
“The medical services are all there in Patuanak, there’s an airport, we have a team that operates there … our emergency management team is preparing for any scenario that comes our way” Paul added, noting that essential supplies such as medicines were transported by air, while a team of nurses managed to reach the community by boat. Many community members with complex medical needs were able to leave before the road was blocked: they took refuge in Cold Lake.
Meanwhile, stories related to the fires are multiplying: one is that of the family of Brooke Kindel, a young mother who gave birth to a baby girl after losing her home and everything she owned in Denare Beach, Saskatchewan, in the Wolf fire, one of the largest active fires in the province, burning in the north. At the time of the fire, Kindel was 35 weeks pregnant. Her family now consists of five people: two children under the age of two and a four-year-old, she and her husband. But it’s a family without a home. They are currently renting in Saskatoon, trying to figure out what to do. “We lost all our stuff. It’s a fresh start and it becomes impersonal. You’re wearing clothes that aren’t yours. Your daughter is wearing clothes that you never picked out for her…” Brooke told CTV. “You don’t feel like yourself anymore…”.
The Wolf fire has destroyed hundreds of homes in Denare Beach, one of 334 wildfires in Saskatchewan so far this year, well above the five-year average of 195 for this time period. There are currently 65 active fires in Saskatchewan.
Manitoba is similarly affected, with 85 active fires, including a wildfire that destroyed seven homes over the weekend. The fire broke out Friday northwest of the community and was fanned by strong winds, prompting about 175 residents to evacuate to Gillam, east of the community, officials with the Tataskweyak Cree Nation said. The Tataskweyak Cree Nation was evacuated once before in June, and it’s not the only Manitoba community facing another evacuation: 600 residents of Lynn Lake have also been ordered to leave their community for the second time this year.
According to CIFFC data, only New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island have no active fires (at the moment of writing this article). Here are the rest of Canada: Yukon 89, B.C. 82, Northwest Territories 75, Alberta 49, Ontario 46, Newfoundland and Labrador 1, Quebec 1.
In the pic above, wildfires in Alberta (from Twitter X – @AlbertaWildfire)
