Saskatchewan wildfire forces evacuations east of Prince Albert
The Lobstick wildfire, sparked by lightning, has grown to 13,000 hectares and prompted evacuation alerts for nearby communities.
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A massive wildfire raging between Prince Albert and Duck Lake in Saskatchewan remains out of control as of Friday evening, with evacuation alerts in place for nearby communities.
The Lobstick fire, sparked by a lightning strike, was first reported Tuesday afternoon. As of Friday evening, the flames had expanded to 13,000 hectares — up from 1,300 hectares earlier that morning — prompting an evacuation alert for Lily Plain, a small community southwest of Prince Albert.
Lily Plain had been placed under a mandatory evacuation order Thursday evening before it was downgraded to an alert around 9 p.m. The RM of Duck Lake also received a mandatory evacuation order that was later downgraded to an alert.
Public Safety Minister Michael Weger told reporters Friday that some equipment had been temporarily pulled back for safety reasons. "The heat of the fire, plus just the weather — temperatures in almost the mid-30s — did affect some of the dozer work," Weger said. "The dozers just couldn't get into some of the spots."
Volunteer firefighter Jordyne Seminoff from Macdowall, about 10 km east of the flames, said conditions are ideal for rapid fire spread. "With that heat and the humidity being so low, we're kind of in that best recipe for a fire to move," she said.
Type 1 and Type 2 fire crews are operating on the blaze, supported by helicopters, air tankers, heavy equipment and local fire departments. Much of southern and mid-Saskatchewan is under an orange Environment Canada heat warning with above-average temperatures persisting from earlier in the week.