Wildfire victim wants Sask. public safety leaders replaced after 'damning' report

A adult male who missed his domiciliate and belongings in a wildfire in northern Saskatchewan endure yr says he wants new leadership at the province's public safety agency.

Dustin Trumbley, who lives in Denare Beach, appeared at a news conference with the NDP Opposition in Saskatoon Friday after the release by the Saskatchewan Party government of an independent review of the province's response to last year's wildfires.

The review found the "extraordinary" wildfire season exposed inadequate provincial preparation that resulted in a confusing and inconsistent response.

Trumbley said those findings point to a failure of leadership at the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency and added he has "no faith" the province will act on the 11 recommendations from the 107-page review by Canadian consulting firm MNP.

"Yes, I honestly do think both [SPSA vice-president] Steve [Roberts] and [SPSA president] Marlo [Pritchard] should resign from their positions," Trumbley said. "And that is my opinion.

"I'm not sure if they share that opinion, but as far as I'm concerned there was such a break in management and communication. Some people, their life has changed forever."

NDP Opposition community safety critic Hugh Gordon said at the news conference that he would have replaced the SPSA leadership if he was the minister in charge. Gordon also criticized the delay in releasing the report, which the government received on May 22, and the decision to make it public on a Friday.

"It's a damning report," Gordon said.

Minutes earlier, Pritchard said he took responsibility for the shortcomings in the response.

"I said it last year and I'll say it again right now that the ultimate responsibility is myself as president," Pritchard told reporters. "I have committed to my board and my minister that we can do better. We now have a roadmap to follow."

Community Safety Minister Michael Weger, who also has responsibility for the SPSA, said at the government news conference that the province is acting on all 11 recommendations. Weger took over the responsibilities in December from Justice Minister Tim McLeod.

"After reading this 107-page review, it is clear, the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency must do better," Weger said.

But he was unable to put a price tag on responding to the review. He called last year's wildfire season "unprecedented."

The review acknowledges the extreme nature of last year's wildfire season, during which 2.9 million hectares burned, more than three times the 10-year average of 898,436 hectares.

There were more than 500 fires, prompting evacuations of more than 10,000 people from 50-plus communities.

Despite the extent of last year's wildfires, the review found "significant gaps" in the response by the SPSA.

The province's wildfire and emergency response system experienced "significant strain due to extreme, but reasonably foreseeable, conditions after consecutive years of extreme wildfire seasons in Canada," it says.

The severe wildfire season revealed weaknesses that were "exposed or intensified by the severity of the season, rather than caused by it," it adds.

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The review calls for "a more risk- and science-informed prevention and mitigation framework," supported by adequate capacity and co-operation between agencies.

The review further criticized inconsistent communication and a lack of clear roles, exposing the need for improved provincial co-ordination.

The review also says the "absence of a clearly articulated provincial recovery strategy created uncertainty for communities and partners as operations transitioned from response to longer term rebuilding and support."

The review cites the 2017 Prairie Resilience Strategy, which was intended to treat 2,464 hectares of Crown land by 2028 to make them more resilient to wildfires.

It concludes that, "although progress is being made, it is not clear how the target was established nor do the targets appear to be grounded in an assessment of accumulated wildfire risk or fire science."

Weger said he was unsure how that target was established and Pritchard said it predates the SPSA's involvement in wildfire response.

It also says SPSA's mitigation team, while fully staffed with four members, is "not sufficient to address the scale of required activities."

The review resulted from 1,388 responses to a public survey, 23 focus groups, 66 interviews and 145 survey responses from SPSA staff.

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"There is nobody up there [in northern Saskatchewan] who has faith in the provincial government at all," said Trumbley, who wiped away a tear while speaking. "And you can understand why."

Trumbley said he's fortunate he had good insurance and has rebuilt a house and garage. But he said his new house is one of only 11 rebuilt of the 230 that were lost a year ago.

He called Premier Scott Moe a "coward" for failing to meet with people in Denare Beach. Moe made a surprise visit to Denare Beach last fall.

Reporter

Phil Tank is an award-winning journalist based in Saskatoon. He can be reached at phil.tank@cbc.ca.

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