Crews working to beat back the sizeable forest fire burning its way into the Prince Albert National Park had to change tactics on Sunday, after smoke grounded aerial operations for the day. In a joint update from Parks Canada and the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency (SPSA) Monday, officials say the low-lying smoke and fog helped keep the intensity of the Buhl fire low, and crews were able to make “meaningful progress.” The Buhl fire, the product of a lightning strike that was first identified on June 29, grew to about 95,322 hectares as of midday Monday, with just over 13,000 hectares within the national park, and the remaining 82,094 hectares on provincial Crown land. Since the aerial divisions were grounded for the day, they were reassigned to other areas, according to the two agencies. Firefighters continued bulldozing near the northern perimeter to clear out some of the excess fuel and limit the fire spread. Others continued their direct suppression efforts along the eastern and southeastern fire perimeters and extinguishing hotspots along Highway 916, Parks Canada said. Crews also worked to strengthen defenses around key structures by running a high-volume sprinkler system to dampen a fuel break around the resort village of Ramsey Bay and removing potentially hazardous trees along the sprinkler hose line to prevent damage to the system, the SPSA said. The national park reissued a pre-evacuation alert on Aug. 1, and that remains in effect. The park and the townsite of Waskesiu are still open, but all of the backcountry trails are closed until further notice. On Highway 2 north of Waskesiu, the Ditch fire is ongoing. The road is still open, but officials say travelers may see fire activity from the road and visibility may be reduced by smoke. Firefighters, helicopters and heavy machinery are working adjacent to the roadway, the SPSA said. Fire distance from communities: - Ramsey Bay – 0.9 km
- Montreal Lake – 12.5 km
- Waskesiu – 30.6 km
- Bittern Lake – 31.8 km
- Elk Ridge – 34.8 km
- McPhee Lake – 37.9 km
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