Latest news with #Waskesiu
CTV News
5 hours ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Parks Canada provides update on wildfire in Prince Albert National Park
Trees burned by wildfires in northern Manitoba are shown during a helicopter tour in the surrounding area of Flin Flon, Man. on Thursday, June 12, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mike Deal-Pool Officials with Parks Canada gave more insight into the battle against the Buhl Fire, which is now burning inside Prince Albert National Park. The wildfire is estimated to cover 33,917 hectares – 6,262 hectares of which are within the park's boundaries. As of Tuesday evening, the fire is 31 kilometres from the townsite of Waskesiu. On Sunday, a pre-evacuation alert was issued for those inside Prince Albert National Park and the townsite of Waskesiu. Residents are not required to leave the area at this time – but are encouraged to be ready for an evacuation at short notice. 'This is a very difficult decision to make, and yet we feel it's prudent, just out of caution and abundance of caution for public safety, to alert people that it's possible that there could be an evacuation alert,' explained Gregg Walker, an incident commander with Parks Canada. 'We want to give people as much time as possible to evacuate should that become necessary and so evacuations are complicated and can take some time and we want to make sure people aren't under a great deal of duress while doing it.' According to Walker, the team managing the fire consists of 29 personnel, three helicopters, in addition to other heavy equipment. The majority of work being carried out is aimed at limiting the fire's spread southward. Cat lines north and south of the MacLennan River as well as north of Crean Lake are planned. Additionally, more cat lines are planned for Ramsay Bay and Montreal Lake Cree Nation. While the coming days don't look especially windy at the moment – Walker says that conditions are not expected to improve either. There is no distance threshold established for when an evacuation order will be called for communities in the area – like Waskesiu. Those decisions will be dependent on analysis of the fire's behaviour. 'We are currently planning some thresholds for when we would go to an evacuation alert and when we might move to an evacuation order and those come through analysis of fire behavior and weather and meteorology, through some specialists we have working on that,' he added. As of Tuesday evening, there are 48 active wildfires and eight active evacuations.
CBC
6 hours ago
- Climate
- CBC
The streets of a popular Sask. resort town are much quieter after a wildfire pre-emergency alert
The town of Waskesiu, Sask., in the heart of Prince Albert National Park, was issued a wildfire pre-emergency alert over the weekend. Some businesses question the call.
CBC
12 hours ago
- Climate
- CBC
'It's like a ghost town': Waskesiu businesses take hit after wildfire pre-emergency alert
Social Sharing A restaurant owner in Waskesiu, Sask., says wildfire smoke near Prince Albert National Park is causing confusion and panic, and hurting local businesses during their busiest time of year. Poor internet connection? CBC Lite is our low-bandwidth website. Erin Barber, who owns Happy Campers Bar and Grill in the lakeside resort community, said she supports public health advisories, but believes a recent emergency alert about smoke was misunderstood by many as a fire evacuation notice. "There's no fire evacuation going on," Barber said. "So as far as we are all concerned, the media has created widespread panic and we are now losing out as businesses." Parks Canada issued a wildfire pre-emergency alert on Sunday evening due to the Buhl Fire burning about 40 kilometres away from the Waskesiu townsite, located about 200 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon. The alert warned of deteriorating air quality and visibility from smoke, and encouraged people with lung conditions, young children or elderly residents to consider leaving temporarily. Barber said her restaurant has seen a sharp drop in business since the alert. She said many visitors packed up and left the community Monday morning, even though there has been no official evacuation order and no immediate threat to the townsite. "It was busy. It was like a normal summer day," she said. "And now it's like a ghost town." Barber said she understands why vulnerable people might choose to leave, but that public messaging should have been clearer. "There will be an emergency alert that goes out that every single person will get if there's any risk to the townsite," she said. "That hasn't happened." 'Not as bad as people would think': Waskesiu Trading Company Further up the road, the general manager of the Waskesiu Trading Company said the smoke in Waskesiu is not as bad as people perceive. "We're still actually able to just barely see across the lake there right now,"Jason Carroll told CBC early Tuesday morning, lifting his phone to show what looked like a light fog in the air. He said the community had "nice clear skies" Monday until smoke kicked in toward the afternoon, "but still not as bad as people would think." The pre-emergency alert was a surprise to Carroll, who said conditions are much worse elsewhere. "I've talked to some people over the phone who are in Prince Albert," said Carroll. "The smoke is actually a lot worse there than what it is here." While the business is still running as usual, it is a lot quieter than is typical on a day in July. "It's like how it is in spring and fall," said Carroll, who has baked at the business over the last five summers. "Definitely a dip down for sure compared to usual." Carroll said the alert won't take as large of a toll on his business, which often serves food to firefighters in these kinds of situations, as it will for non-food related businesses like the local gift shop and liquor stores. He said there could have been better communication around what the alert really means. "I feel like from my understanding the alert was more for the smoke, for people with, you know, asthma, the elderly, stuff like that," Carroll said. "[Tourists] are worried about the fire rather than the smoke." David Archer, co-owner of the Waskesiu Trading Company, echoed the need for better communication from Parks Canada. He said the wildfire travelling in the community's direction is not likely, based on previous years. "Winds tend to move westerly in this part of this area," Archer said. He said there should be daily updates to better inform businesses and visitors. "People plan their vacations months in advance," he said. "Let them continue with their life and make informed decisions." Parks Canada speaks on evacuation confusion Greg Walker, an incident commander for Parks Canada, said the alert was issued as fire encroached into Prince Albert National Park. "Although there's no immediate threat to the communities of Waskesiu and the nearby outlying ones, there still is a threat from the wildfires up to the northeast of the park," Greg Walker said on CBC's Saskatoon Morning Tuesday, He said the park may not be a stranger to wildfires, but weather conditions are different this year. "There's a long standing drought in this area of the country. And so the wildfire activity and extreme fire behaviour that's happened throughout the province of Saskatchewan, Manitoba this year is related to that," Walker said. Walker said Parks Canada wants to be proactive in its evacuation efforts. He said a pre-emergency alert makes things run smoother if a full evacuation order is issued. "If we evacuate, there will be congestion. There will be people with special needs, will be susceptible people," Walker said. "The other pieces, the air quality and the smoke is going to affect some people." In the meantime, Parks Canada has brought in specialists, including the Saskatchewan Public Safety Association, to present a unified front in fighting the fire. "We expect the communications to improve. We'll dedicate a number of people to that and the communications will become quite a bit more regular," Walker said.
CTV News
2 days ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Wildfire emergency alert issued for Prince Albert National Park
WATCH: Beauval evacuees who arrived in Saskatoon this week were nervously waiting for updates, as a shift in the winds Thursday afternoon brought fire to their A wildfire emergency advisory has been issued by Parks Canada for Prince Albert National Park due to the Buhl Fire, which is currently 40 kilometres from the townsite of Waskesiu. The alert, issued after 6 p.m. on Sunday, instructs residents to be ready to evacuate if required. If residents are able to leave the area immediately, they are encouraged to do so. Members of the public are advised to avoid the area, with the alert adding that the wildfire has the potential to cause emergency situations for the public, including deteriorating air quality and reduced visibility due to smoke. 'A fire ban is now in effect for Prince Albert National Park due to elevated fire danger. Lighting or having fires is strictly prohibited. The fire ban includes the townsite of Waskesiu, all front and back country campgrounds, and day use areas,' Prince Albert National Park said in a post on Facebook. Prohibited items include wood-burning campfires, charcoal wood or briquette barbecues, turkey fryers, torches, indoor and outdoor wood-burning stoves, including kitchen shelters, walled tents, recreational vehicles (RVs), camper vans, and residential buildings. As of Sunday afternoon, there were 56 active wildfires burning in Saskatchewan, with only four of them considered contained.
CTV News
05-06-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Wildfires prompt closures in Prince Albert national park
Watch WATCH: As wildfires rage in Saskatchewan's north, precautionary closures are being put in place in Waskesiu to protect the town and wilderness areas.
