Jan Lake is the latest of three northern Saskatchewan communities to evacuate amid forest fires spreading across the region.
“The community of Jan Lake has declared a state of emergency due to forest fires in the area. We are currently evacuating,” wrote Jan Lake Lodge, the largest campground in the area, in a Facebook post late Tuesday afternoon.
Jed’s at Jan, a campground and store based in Jan Lake, said in a separate post that community leaders had decided to evacuate the area after a public meeting Tuesday afternoon.
“Right now there is not imminent danger,” added the post.
Residents and campers were advised to leave Jan Lake, a resort community and camping area located 80 km west of Flin Flon, by Wednesday evening, and to pick up boats, trailers and other vehicles.
Elsewhere, Pelican Narrows was the subject of a non-emergency evacuation order Monday night.
The order applied to families with young children, people with chronic health conditions, elders and pregnant women.
An evacuation order was issued for the community of Birch Portage last Friday, August 25. The order remained in effect Tuesday.
Two fires classified as “not controlled” by Saskatchewan Wildfire Management continued to burn in the region early Tuesday evening.
One fire, located on the west shore of Jan Lake, had grown to 6,100 hectares, according to Natural Resources Canada.
The other fire, originating near Granite Lake, had grown to 43,845 hectares.
Officials closed off Highway 106 from Creighton to Highway 135 on Monday afternoon due to fire concerns. One fire has spread across Highway 106 since the closure.
The closure remained in effect as of early Tuesday evening. Updates are available on the Saskatchewan government’s Highway Hotline website.
