Dearth of alerts in Dundurn grass fire 'a lesson learned': fire commissioner

The roaring fire sparked by training exercise at Canadian Forces Dundurn on Saturday stoked fear among nearby residents — and now provincial officials are responding to their concerns.

After the flames settled, people who lived in the area decried a lack of communication from officials. 

He maintained the fire was contained, from a technical aspect. 

However, McKay said he could see why people would be concerned with the "wall of fire and the amount of smoke." 

"That's a lesson learned from this spring and we'll see if we can't find better ways to communicate on sort of what is going on, even if there isn't an immediate threat." 

The province is looking into how to use the SaskAlert App to share basic information with people rather than only emergency notifications, he said.

People with the app could receive general information — like the level of a fire's containment — on their phones. It would include a map that highlights the area of concern and links to a web page that will contain more information. 

Tossed cigarette butt sparked Lumsden-area blaze  

It was a cigarette butt tossed out of a car window that caused the fire that swept through the Lumsden Valley, McKay said.

Another large grass fire burned near Wascana Valley Trails just a few days before. 

Currently, moisture is minimal in the ground and the depleted grass has become fuel for fire because the transition between the seasons happened so fast.  

The quick melt coupled with the high winds have created conditions perfect for fire, McKay said. 

"Until it starts to green up, we need to be very aware of the fire risk conditions." 

He has asked people to be proactive and mindful of the risky conditions as they engage in warm weather activities before the annual green up. 

For example, he advised people to remove potential fuel, like wood and dried leaves, from the sides of their home.

People should be cautious when discarding cigarette butts and people driving quads shouldn't idle over long grass, he said. 

Furthermore, farmers should also be careful when doing controlled burns — because they can quickly become out of control. 

In 2017, the fire season flared up around the end of July — timing considered late by McKay. 

It concluded near October's end, when wildfire fuelled by high winds burned through the southwestern parts of the province.

Hundreds of livestock were killed and people were evacuated from multiple communities.

The province has since implemented a "single-engine air tanker program."  

"That's crop dusting aircraft to be called in to assist ground forces when it comes to fighting fire," McKay said. The program hasn't been used yet, but 26 pilots have been trained and more are likely to be added to the roster this summer.

The province says people should report controlled burns to 1-866-404-4911 and call 911 if they see a grass fire.