Provincial fire ban issued for large part of northern Sask.

A fire ban has been issued by the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency for a large part of the province's north, effective as of 5 p.m. Thursday. 

It includes areas north of the provincial forest boundary to the Churchill River and is meant to stop human-caused fires, the agency said in a news release.

The ban prohibits open fires, controlled burns and fireworks in the designated area, including in provincial parks, recreation sites and the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District in the area.

A list of fire restrictions in provincial parks and recreation sites can be found here.

The fire ban is necessary "to protect lives, communities, major infrastructure, and resources from wildfire," public safety agency vice-president of operations Steve Roberts said in the news release. 

Roberts said the main cause of the current wildfires is human activity that can be prevented. 

The agency said 28 wildfires were burning in the province as of Thursday afternoon.

So far, there have been a total of 133 wildfires in Saskatchewan this year, according to the news release.