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The Saskatchewan Health Authority )SHA) says acute-care patients have been safely transferred out of La Ronge as the community evacuates in the face of a wildfire.
The mandatory evacuation order for La Ronge was issued on Monday afternoon by the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA), along with evacuation orders for the nearby Lac La Ronge Indian Band and Air Ronge, after the fire breached the local airport.
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According to Derek Miller, Chief Operating Officer with the SHA, 53 acute-care patients and residents have been safely evacuated from local care homes and the La Ronge Health Centre, which is now closed, including the emergency department.
“Evacuation of these patients and residents was a rapidly evolving situation that required flexibility, close coordination and quick decision making throughout the afternoon and evening, yesterday and into the early hours of this morning,” he said.
Of those patients and residents, 21 came from the hospital, 15 from the continuing care side of the hospital and the remaining 17 were from care homes and group homes within the community of La Ronge.
According to Miller, initially the evacuees were going to be transported by air, but as conditions worsened this was no longer possible. Evacuees were transported by ground to Elk Ridge, where additional EMS crews were ready to transport patients to 19 different facilities.
“Because we spread the 53 individuals across 19 sites, it allows us to level load those extra demands,” Miller said.
“We’re definitely sensitive to being able to meet their needs going forward.”
Patients and residents were transferred to facilities in Arborfield, Battlefords, Birch Hills, Canora, Carrot River, Cut Knife, Duck Lake, Foam Lake, Kamsack, Kinistino, Lanigan, Maidstone, Melfort, Prince Albert, Rosthern, Shellbrook, Tisdale, Unity and Wilkie.
Some of those communities are over six hours away from La Ronge by car.
Miller said five doctors and a handful of nurses stayed behind in the community to provide basic emergency services out of the EMS base in the area.
“We’re grateful for them for doing that,” Miller said.
“We’re going to monitor that based on the situation as it evolves and coordinate with first responders in the community.”
The health authority said its teams worked through the night to transfer the patients, with help from paramedics, the public safety agency, the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health, the Canadian Red Cross, Saskatchewan Air Ambulance, STARS, Rise Air, Lac La Ronge Indian Band, Medical Communications and Coordination Centres and Elk Ridge Resort.
“(I’m) very thankful today and proud of the work that our teams did with our various partners for this successful and safe evacuation,” he said.
Miller said the SHA and SPSA were monitoring the status of the fire. As of Tuesday morning, the fire had not reached the hospital.
“We closed the hospital due to the overall threat in the La Ronge area and evacuation order, not because the hospital was imminently exposed to fire,” he said.
Saskatoon hosting about 2,000 wildfire evacuees
Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block said the city is hosting about 2,000 evacuees, and that number could grow.
Speaking on the 650 CKOM Morning Show, Block called the situation “truly tragic,” and said some of the evacuees recently learned that they lost their homes.
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“It’s an opportunity, I think, for our city and our province to really rally and and try to support as much as we can,” Block told guest host Justin Blackwell.
“Right now we’re trying to figure out how we can get them into hotels where they can be together, so they have some community, rather than sort of piecemealing it all over the city, trying to co-ordinate that so that they can have some support among one another.”
Block said the United Way, the Saskatoon Community Foundation and the Central Urban Métis Federation Inc. are accepting donations for the evacuees.
Free dog boarding for wildfire evacuees
Meanwhile, a pet care service in Saskatoon is offering free dog boarding to those displaced by the wildfires burning in the province.
Furbaby Pet Care is offering the service to help evacuees who have no place for their pets to stay.
“As people are forced to leave their homes during these evacuations, we want to ensure their dogs have a safe and comfortable place to go,” Jocelyn Davey-Hawreluik, the organization’s owner and CEO, said in a statement.
“We know how important pets are to families — and we’re here to help during this difficult time.”
Dogs must belong to families displaced by wildfires, the pet care service noted, and proof of up-to-date vaccinations is mandatory. Owners must also fill out an intake waiver and create an account with the company, which can be done at the time of arrival.
“The Furbaby campus is fully staffed and equipped to handle both boarding and daycare services, offering a clean, safe, and loving environment for pets,” the company noted.
Twenty wildfires burning in Saskatchewan
According to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency, there were 20 wildfires burning around the province on Tuesday morning, and 18 communities are currently under evacuation orders.
So far this year, Saskatchewan has seen 229 wildfires, well above the five-year average of 132.
The agency is set to deliver an update on the wildfire situation in the province at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday. 650 CKOM and 980 CJME will carry the update live.
— with files from 980 CJME’s Nicole Garn
