Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation chief calls for immediate action after wildfire forces evacuations

The leadership of a Saskatchewan First Nation is calling for the province to change how it attacks fires, suggesting its slow response has put their home at risk and prompted an evacuation.

Officials with the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation (PBCN) announced the move, at the recommendation of the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency, saying the Flanagan fire to Sandy Bay's northwest is directly threatening their community.

Sandy Bay has a population of about 1,800, and is located about 474 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon and about 22 kilometres from the Saskatchewan-Manitoba border. It is among nine communities that comprise the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation.

A statement from Chief Peter A. Beatty and the Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC) released late Tuesday takes aim at the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency, suggesting that the provincial entity is not approving the activation of hundreds of First Nations firefighters that could help extinguish the fires before they become a problem. 

"Why would you let a fire go that's close to a community until it becomes a huge problem and then try and manage it; at that point, it's unmanageable," Beatty told CBC. He referred to the province's wildfire management as a "let it burn" policy.

"These people didn't need to be removed from their community, that could have been prevented four weeks ago when the fire started."

He said the province needs to act on fires immediately before they destroys homes, as well as hunting and gathering areas.

Beatty said the PAGC's Saskatchewan First Nations Emergency Management has access to the necessary gear, including fire hats and boots, and have the same training as others.

There are three main types of land-based firefighters, according to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA):

• Type 1, trained SPSA personnel that are located in each response area with initial response teams that also perform sustained wildfire suppression.
• Type 2, crews contracted through formal agreements with First Nations and northern communities.
• Type 3, emergency support firefighters that are normally sent to work on fires that are under control or mop up dying wildfires.

Beatty says the province needs to employ Type 3 wildfire firefighters to attack the fires early, especially when they're near northern settlements, villages and reserves.

"There are hundreds of qualified First Nations firefighters ready and willing to assist, but the SPSA has refused to hire them, claiming it is too dangerous. Their reasoning? A lack of proper personal protective equipment,'' Beatty had said in the statement.

Beatty said not utilizing such a qualified resource was a serious oversight that endangers lives and communities.

The fire is also threatening the nearby SaskPower Island Falls Hydroelectric Station.

PAGC Chief Brian Hardlotte echoed Beatty's frustrations and says wildfires leading to the evacuation of northern communities have been a problem for the past two decades.

He said the province's current approach to fire management is inadequate and negligent in its disregard for the well-being of Indigenous communities in northern Saskatchewan. Both he and Beatty believe the province has to change how it attacks fires to stop the trend of evacuations.

"This isn't just a policy failure; it's a failure of leadership and moral responsibility of the provincial government,'' Hardlotte said in the statement. "These aren't just remote forests — they are our homes, our sacred lands, and our future.

"To let them burn without doing everything possible to extinguish the flames is an unforgivable betrayal of our trust."

Hardlotte says the province and First Nation leadership need to better communicate with each other. 

The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) would not agree to an interview with CBC, but said in a statement "SPSA pperation staff have and will continue to engage in discussions with the community leaders and SaskPower regarding these fires and operations. The SPSA assesses every wildfire and decides the best way to manage each fire."

It also said it has used 11 Type 2 crews from First Nations to attack this fire, including from PBCN communities.

The most recent update from the SPSA sizes the wildfire at 13,000 hectares, though that size has remained unchanged from previous updates. The wildfire crossed the Churchill River, along the northern area of the community, overnight Tuesday.

A daily SPSA wildfire update said the blaze was estimated to be about 130 square kilometres in size and that shows there are multiple crews on-site of the wildfire with helicopter, air tanker and heavy equipment support. It says the Canadian Red Cross is aiding the evacuation.

According to Duane Hiebert, the PBCN emergency response manager, the Flanagan fire is about seven kilometres from the community. Hiebert said about 300 people had been evacuated so far with another 200 people that were being moved out on buses Wednesday.

Of that 300, Hiebert wasn't sure how many were from fellow PBCN community Deschambault Lake, which also had a partial evacuation because of smoke issues.

He said buses would continue in and out of the community until everyone who wants to leave is out. He said the SPSA had informed officials that the winds are expected to push the fire closer to Sandy Bay on Thursday. 

Charlie Caribou, 69, told CBC Wednesday afternoon that some of his children and grandchildren were still in Sandy Bay, but hoped they would arrive soon.

"We are worried about the homes, but life comes first — for me, anyway — my own family and the rest of the relations I have there and the population of our people there, they're my people and I worry about all of them, not only my family," Caribou said.

The Northern Village of Sandy Bay, the related off-reserve community, also has a partial evacuation ordered for the community.