wildfire smoke from northeast blazes blankets southern sask.
there are currently 64 wildfires burning in saskatchewan as of wednesday, 10 of which are not contained.
sep 4 2024
2 minute read
smoke can be seen hanging like a veil over the saskatchewan legislative building regina, saskatchewan on august 4, 2021.
brandon harder
/
regina leader-post
southern saskatchewan is expected to be covered in a blanket of wildfire smoke over the coming days as a cold front pushes air from blazes that continue to burn out of control in the province’s northeast.
the merkley wildfire, which is approaching the peter ballantyne cree nation (pbcn) community of southend, has grown by nearly 7,000 hectares within the last five days, according to the saskatchewan public safety agency (spsa). hundreds were evacuated last week as the fire threatened the only road in or out. the community is still under an evacuation order by the first nation.
a second pbcn community also remains under an evacuation order about 106 kilometres southeast of southend. around 1,400 people from sandy bay have yet to return to their homes after being forced to evacuate on aug. 13. but the flanagan fire threatening the community has shrunk by nearly 50 per cent.
the spsa reported wednesday that the seabee mine, about 90 kilometres northwest of sandy bay, has also been evacuated while the 65,000-hectare kraus fire rages on.
although a cold front brings the possibility of rain to the northeast section of the province, environment and climate change canada meteorologist stephen berg says it won’t be nearly enough to tame the wildfires that have burnt tens of thousands of hectares in the area.
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“there would have to be quite a bit of widespread rain to make much of a dent,” said berg in an interview wednesday. “currently, the rates are probably going to be in the range of five to 10 millimetres, so not really all that significant for fire suppression.”
however, berg says the cool air from the weather system should push out wildfire smoke relatively quickly, with skies clearing in south-central saskatchewan by wednesday afternoon. areas south of regina were issued air quality advisories that are expected to last a couple of days.
looking into next week, berg says much of the province should prepare for warmer-than-normal weather. temperatures for regina and saskatoon are forecasted to exceed 30 c by monday.
as for the north, berg said hot and dry conditions next week may exacerbate fire conditions, with temperatures expected to reach a high of 29 c by monday.
while many are getting into “fall-mode,” berg says it’s important to remain mindful of the upcoming period of heat and to take the precautions when doing anything physical outdoors.
“even if heat warnings aren’t issued, people with underlying health conditions, people who are pregnant or younger or more elderly might need to make sure they have a place to go to stay cool,” said berg.
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there are currently 64 wildfires burning in saskatchewan as of wednesday, 10 of which are not contained.
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