As wildfire risk grows, fire ban implemented in Saskatchewan's north and provincial parks
CBC
Dry and hot conditions in the province that followed a wet June have prompted the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency to issue a fire ban in certain areas to reduce the risk of wildfires.
The agency issued the provincial fire ban on Thursday, beginning at noon. It's expected to remain in place until the conditions change or if the ongoing wildfires become more manageable.
The provincial fire ban encompasses:
The ban prohibits open fires, controlled burns and fireworks, with the goal to protect lives, communities, infrastructure and resources, said Steve Roberts, the public safety agency's vice-president of operations.
He said that gas-fuelled stoves or fireplaces are essentially the only fires allowed.
"The intent of the fire ban is to reduce unwanted, human-caused fires, make people understand that even though we have had a very wet June period here, that the conditions in the forest at this time are extremely volatile," Roberts said during a news conference Thursday afternoon.
"The risk of ignition is high."
As of Thursday afternoon, there were 75 wildfires burning in Saskatchewan. So far, there have been 302 wildfires this year, higher than the five-year average of 211 by this time.
"With all of our crews being actively engaged on the 75 wildfires at this time, we really do not have additional capacity to take on unwanted fires that may start due to carelessness or negligence," Roberts said.
Of the ongoing wildfires, 17 are not contained. Roberts highlighted two ongoing wildfires: the Davis fire (about 10 hectares in size) northeast of La Ronge and the Wilson fire (about 100 hectares), east of Creighton. Both started on Wednesday evening, Roberts said.
Roberts said the Davis fire poses a risk to Highway 102 between Grandmother's Bay and Brabant Lake. The road was briefly closed Thursday morning and there have been reports of SaskTel outages.
The Wilson fire is threatening Creighton and Denare Beach to its south, Roberts said, and Highway 106. Both fires are threatening the SaskPower infrastructure in the area.
All of the crews shipped to other Canadian regions like Newfoundland and the Northwest Territories have been brought back to Saskatchewan, with the exception of 21 firefighters in the Northwest Territories, who Roberts said are expected to return.
Manitoba air tankers are assisting firefighters at the Wilson fire.
The Hudson's Bay Company vanished in June, when the last of its stores ceased operations, but its presence in Winnipeg might never be fully erased.
At a Prince Albert public library branch, the usual quiet is replaced with the sound of children laughing and lining up for autographs as Prince Albert Raiders players settle in for an evening of reading.
When a fire broke out at the Charlottetown Farmers’ Market in the early hours of Christmas Day, John Bell was among the first on scene.
For the first time in 20 years, Edmonton’s police chief is a local hire.
One of the most popular hot springs in northeastern B.C. appears to be cooling off — or at the very least feeling that way — according to First Nations researchers who have been taking the temperature of the popular spot off the Alaska Highway.
No longer do the waves of Lake Timmicaca lap against car bumpers.
Municipal councils across Essex County and in Chatham-Kent and Sarnia have spent this year’s budget season trying to keep tax increases manageable while battling inflation and soaring policing costs and weighing the immediate cost of repairing aging infrastructure against the long-term cost of holding off.
Construction on Marda Loop’s main streets project may have quieted down, but redevelopment work continues at several locations along 34th Avenue. This time, the focus is on preserving the street’s history.
As both the provincial and federal governments hone in on mining opportunities in northern Ontario, supporting local industries and building safer highways are top of mind for regional leaders this year.
Tucked inside Toronto’s leafy, quiet and private residential neighbourhoods are facades that tell the story of another time in the city’s urban planning history.
Ontario’s two main opposition parties will try to turn the page on what was a difficult year, with one rebuilding after an underwhelming leadership vote result and another searching for a new person to take the party helm.
This year, two things will happen to Canada's fiscal watchdog: Interim Parliamentary Budget Officer Jason Jacques will be replaced or made permanent, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will publish its review of the office.
As the era of bilateral bad blood between Canada and the U.S. drags on, some snowbirds are facing a choice this January: Go south to warmer climes, or boycott a country that has gone from friend to somewhat of a foe.