With both major forest fires near Pelican Narrows partially controlled and evacuated residents back home, some people affected by the fires are sharing their stories.
The two major blazes – the Granite Lake fire and the Preston fire - have been burning since Aug. 1. Each has reduced in size and strength over the past few weeks.
“Both are listed as ‘Ongoing Assessment’, which means that the fires continue to be monitored to assess any risks to area values. There is no threat to any communities or property at this time so there are minimal resources assigned to these fires,” said a provincial spokesperson.
Several fire crews have left, while residents and cottagers who evacuated the area have returned home.
“It was just a wall of flame,” said Tom McDermott, a volunteer paramedic who attended Pelican Narrows and worked with crews at the peak of the fires.
“It’s unbelievable how fast a fire can actually take forest. It just heats it up right now. You don’t even have time to run, that’s how quick that fire is. I seen it from a mile away and it took the whole shoreline
in minutes. It was done. The smoke had to be three, four hundred feet in the air.”
Evacuations
“We were aware of the fires for about two-to-three weeks before we were evacuated,” said Jed Huntley, who owns a campground and store at Jan Lake. After a public meeting, residents of Jan Lake chose to evacuate the community voluntarily on August 29.
In total, five communities – Pelican Narrows, Jan Lake, Tyrrell Lake, Granite Lake and Birch Portage – issued evacuation orders during the fire. Evacuees stayed with family and friends, in hotels, or at emergency shelters in Prince Albert and Saskatoon.
At the fire season’s height, the Granite Lake fire burned across both Highway 106 and 135, causing large portions of both to be closed.
Huntley said most residents were concerned about another fire burning at Wilkin Bay, on the other side of Jan Lake. When conditions changed and blew the Granite Lake fire across Highway 135 toward the community, things took a turn.
“When I left, when the evacuation happened, I got out at about 10 o’clock in the morning. It was that night when the winds were supposed to gust from the southeast. They thought it would push the fire right into the community,” said Huntley.
McDermott said the fire situation at Pelican Narrows looked grim, with the Granite Lake fire burning to the southeast, the Wilkin Bay fire burning to the southwest and the Preston blaze just north of the community.
“In all my time here, I’ve never seen this type of fire behaviour like this ever. I’ve seen big fires, but nothing like this. The fires actually surrounded Pelican Narrows,” he said.
Throughout September, weather conditions changed, helping the fire fighting effort. The heat and volatile winds the area had seen during the month of August subsided, replaced by cooler temperatures and rain showers. The weather change allowed firefighters to stomp down large portions of both fires.
“It was close. The weather changed in our favour and it allowed all the firefighters to get a jump on it,” said McDermott.
Huntley said that, while the sudden change in weather conditions could have easily doomed Jan Lake, prompt action by firefighters ultimately kept the flames at bay.
“Ever seen The Perfect Storm, where all the elements just kind of come together? It seemed like that was happening, except the firefighters did an amazing job and Mother Nature helped us right at the end,” said Huntley.
Slowly, evacuation orders were lifted for most area residents. Today, most residents are back home. Services have been restored, schools are in session and people are back to their daily routines.
What comes next?
Today, the Preston and Granite fires are the only two forest fires still burning in Saskatchewan. The two fires combined have affected 200,000 hectares of land this summer.
Residents returned to large swaths of burned forest, but all homes and vital infrastructure in Pelican Narrows or Jan Lake are still standing.
“With what they did and the amount of area that burnt around, with the heat we had, I just think that all the firefighters did an amazing job. If it wasn’t for them, I’m almost certain the community would have burnt that first night,” said Huntley.
Despite the relatively happy ending, people returning to the area have come back to a different place.
“Me, being a local resident and having relatives in Pelican Narrows and passing through there, looking at the devastation of fires, you begin to realize a whole new reality is now here,” said McDermott.
“You hear stories of other communities on fire and we were faced with it right head on for a couple of weeks. It’s a rude awakening of what fire can do to where you grew up living. Driving along the highway, all of a sudden it’s just charred black.”
