Latest news with #PremierScottMoe
CBC
10-06-2025
- CBC
2 people charged with arson, accused of starting fires in Sask.
Prince Albert RCMP investigate 3rd arson attempt at fire base While wildfires continue to rage in the province, two Saskatchewan residents accused of deliberately setting separate fires have now been charged with arson. At Friday's daily media briefing, Premier Scott Moe announced the charges and said that one of them was for starting one of the province's major wildfires. But in a news release later in the afternoon, the RCMP detailed charges that were laid for two suspicious fires — one that Waskesiu RCMP responded to off Highway 696 on May 30 and one that Nipawin RCMP responded to in a ditch beside the Snowden turnoff on Highway 55 on June 3. Neither of those appear to be related to a major wildfire. The fire that Moe initially referred to, the Ditch fire, near Weyakwin, was reported on May 26. It has grown to 95,000 hectares and appears to be moving very close to the massive Shoe fire — the largest blaze in the province at more than 470,000 hectares. Those fires and others in northern Saskatchewan have forced thousands of residents from their homes. The province declared a state of emergency on May 29 due to the wildfire situation. As of Friday, there were 23 active fires and 248 total fires this year — far above the five-year average of 139. "We understand there is public interest in seeing if any wildfires can be fully or partially attributed to criminal acts," Saskatchewan RCMP wrote in the media release. "Checking into the circumstances of each report of arson received recently will take some time." The 18-year-old woman from Montreal Lake Cree Nation charged in the May 30 fire was scheduled to appear in court in that community on Thursday, while the 36-year-old man from Pelican Narrows charged in the June 3 fire was scheduled to appear in Prince Albert provincial court on Friday. Another suspicious fire reported to Prince Albert RCMP on Thursday is believed to be an attempted arson "at a provincial firefighting base north of Prince Albert," according to another RCMP news release sent Friday evening. Officers determined someone poured an accelerant onto a pile of wood and started a fire, then fled on a bicycle. The fire was put out with no major damage. Shifting winds bring fresh wildfire threat to La Ronge Strong winds pushing a wildfire toward the industrial park and Eagle Point areas, just northeast of the town of La Ronge, triggered an alert for the region on Friday morning. The community is already subject to an evacuation order, but any people that haven't left those particular areas were told to get to a safe place. Tammy Cook-Searson, chief of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, said the situation is serious and unpredictable. "The wind has shifted. It's coming in from the southwest right now and it's pushing the fire northeast," she said on Friday morning. Cook-Searson said the Pisew Fire, which began near Hall Lake, has since grown to threaten several surrounding communities. There have been significant structure losses in both Hall Lake, west of La Ronge, and Sucker River, north of La Ronge, due to the fire. "The fire is less than two kilometres just north of Sucker River and it's heading northeast," she said. "And then there's also the fire that has reached Clam Bridge, where the bridge has burnt and the structure has been lost there, and it's moving northwest." Cook-Searson confirmed that both Highway 2 and Highway 102 are currently closed and impassable due to wildfire activity. Any people still in La Ronge are being directed to the Jonas Roberts Memorial Community Centre, which is serving as the local muster point. "Right now it's unpredictable," Cook-Searson said. "The flames were pretty big this morning just before 5 a.m. right behind the fire base on the Industrial Road in the town of La Ronge." Cook-Searson said emergency crews are working hard to hold the line. "We are expecting rain starting at noon today," she added. "So hopefully it materializes and fingers crossed that we do get that rain — much needed rain — because the fires are burning out of control." Residents are urged to stay away from the area and continue following evacuation guidance from local officials and emergency services. La Ronge resident says province isn't doing enough As thousands evacuated La Ronge due to an advancing wildfire, some residents made the difficult decision to stay behind — hoping to protect their homes and keep watch over their community. Terry Hunt is one of them. Speaking to CBC Radio's Blue Sky, Hunt said he remained in La Ronge to defend his property and voiced concerns about what he sees as an inadequate provincial response. "We're in a pretty tough situation up here, and I'm feeling that our provincial government is not doing enough to help us out," Hunt said. Hunt said the community was without power and alleged there had been looting. RCMP confirmed one report of looting in a news release Friday, saying officers stopped a vehicle at a checkpoint on Highway 2 on Wednesday that had been stolen from La Ronge and found items in it that were linked to a theft in the community the day before. Two men were charged. Police say officers are regularly patrolling evacuated communities as part of wildfire response efforts. Still, Hunt believes more boots on the ground — including military support — are urgently needed. "I think we need more police on the ground, which includes the armed forces coming up here," he said. Marking an occasion during hard times Despite the hardship and danger, some evacuees have found small ways to stay hopeful. Some drivers fleeing La Ronge earlier in the week were forced to wait for hours on the highway due to smoke and fire. That's where Terri Roberts and others met up with a friend — whose granddaughter was having a birthday. They brought the cake along, and sang right there on the roadside. "She was holding her cake and we all started singing Happy Birthday to her outside of the car.… I've never experienced something like that, but it was pretty emotional," Roberts said. "She was just full of smiles and we could see she was quite appreciative of what we did for her." Roberts says they eventually made it south to safety. Current evacuation orders. Interactive Sask. active fire map. Fire danger map. Environment and Climate Change Canada weather alerts. Sask. Highway Hotline. Smoke forecast. Air quality. Tracking wildfires across Canada. Corrections: A previous version of this story contained a statement from Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe that said the Ditch fire burning near Weyakwin was deliberately set and that a person had been charged. That information was incorrect. In fact, police have laid separate charges as a result of fires they deem suspicious that were reported to Waskesiu RCMP near Highway 696 and to Nipawin RCMP near Highway 55. June 6, 2025 10:57 PM
CBC
09-06-2025
- General
- CBC
Northern Sask. mayor calls province's wildfire evacuation response 'disgusting'
Social Sharing 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." WATCH | Family behind La Ronge's Robertson Trading nearly loses cabin to wildfire, too: Family behind La Ronge's Robertson Trading nearly loses cabin to wildfire, too 1 hour ago Duration 1:37 The family behind Robertson Trading say they were overcome with emotions when the iconic general store was lost to a wildfire in La Ronge, Sask., last week. But they didn't have much time to sit with their feelings. Owner Scott Robertson said they were occupied trying to save their family cabin that nearly burned down, too. 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." WATCH | Sask. restaurant feeds those fighting wildfires: Sask. restaurant feeds those fighting wildfires 6 hours ago Duration 2:19 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. 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.
CTV News
07-06-2025
- CTV News
Two people charged for setting wildfires in Saskatchewan
Watch WATCH: Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says two people have been charged for setting wildfires.
