Fire bans were in effect for Flin Flon, Creighton and Denare Beach last week. The City of Flin Flon lifted the ban on fires within city limits on May 25, specifying that fires can only be started in inspected and permitted fire pits.
On the Saskatchewan side, the Town of Creighton lifted its fire ban on May 28, while the Northern Village of Denare Beach lifted their ban on May 29.
A provincial fire ban was in place for all Crown land, provincial parks and recreation sites in Saskatchewan south of the Churchill River. The ban was lifted on May 25, after rainfall in several areas of high fire danger.
Fires caused two partial road closures. Saskatchewan Highway 106 was partially closed last week due to a fire near Smeaton. Motorists were detoured through Candle Lake on Highway 120. The road had fully reopened as of May 28.
A partial highway closure was also reported on Manitoba Highway 6 near Ashern, as fires in the area moved closer to the road. The highway has since reopened.
While recent rain has helped decrease the risk of spreading fire, conditions are still considered aggressive in northern Saskatchewan. The region around Creighton and Denare Beach has a fire weather index of high, according to Saskatchewan Wildfire Management.
On the Manitoba side, the region around Flin Flon has a low to moderate danger of man-caused potential fire ignition and a moderate risk of lightning potential ignition, according to Manitoba Sustainable Development.
No out-of-control fires are currently burning within 100 kilometres of Flin Flon.
The fire nearest to Flin Flon is located in the Wapawekka Hills, a marshland area northwest of Deschambault Lake. The blaze, currently considered not contained by Saskatchewan Wildfire Management, was around 5,700 hectares in size at press time.
Elsewhere in Manitoba, evacuations have been ordered for the First Nations of Sapotaweyak, Little Grand Rapids and Pauingassi due to fire. The fire burning at Little Grand Rapids and Pauingassi, located near the Manitoba-Ontario border, is considered under control and has reached an overall size of 25,000 hectares as of May 28.
A complex of four fires are currently burning around Sapotaweyak and the community of Pelican Rapids, with one under control, one being held and two out of control as of press time. Combined, the fires were an estimated 6,800 hectares. All four of the fires were human in origin.
