Sask. First Nation Orders 1,800 Residents to Evacuate Due to Wildfire, Questions Provincial Response

Saskatchewan First Nation leaders are calling for “immediate action and accountability” from the province hours after issuing an evacuation order in response to an advancing wildfire. Officials with the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation issued evacuation orders Aug. 13 for Sandy Bay First Nation, a community of 1,800, as an uncontrolled wildfire near Flanagan Lake creeps closer to the community. The last update from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) said the Flanagan wildfire was approximately 130 square kilometres in size and was burning within 20 kilometres of Sandy Bay. The leadership of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and Prince Albert Grand Council issued a press release on Aug. 13, criticizing the provincial agency’s response to the wildfire....