Saskatchewan's ombudsman says Premier Scott Moe's government is failing to provide immediate food, shelter and basic information to the thousands forced from their homes in recent weeks by wildfire.
Sharon Pratchler said evacuees calling in for help are being told the government will get back to them in four days.
“'We will get back to you in four days’ is not a response that should be given,” Pratchler told a news conference Tuesday.
She said her staff are being overwhelmed trying to match evacuees with supports, and said some evacuees are being forced to sleep in their cars.
“The time for working on it has passed and an immediate response is required," she said.
Asked about what she's hearing from evacuees, Pratchler said: “I don’t have a place to sleep tonight. I don’t have food. My baby doesn’t have diapers."
"People are hungry, people are getting sick," she said.
"I've worked two nights with my people on our 24/7 line to try to get a home and food for a person who is displaced who's (also) an employee of the Government of Saskatchewan."
Pratchler said there were other concerns: aid money being given to evacuees isn't retroactive to the day they were forced out of their homes.
Among her calls, she said information from government is muddied and needs to be delivered clearly: "It can't be a flood of emails and press releases."
She said a database is needed to co-ordinate resources and help. Pratchler said her office will investigate the province's wildfire response, but could not say what the scope of that probe would be.
Saskatchewan is dealing with multiple fires in the north that have forced between 10,000 and 15,000 people to flee, including 7,000 from the La Ronge area.
Opposition NDP member Jordan McPhail said Pratchler’s concerns echo what he is hearing from the front lines.
“People being bounced around from agency to agency, with no clear information. Phone numbers that don’t work, emails that never receive a response,” McPhail said in a news release.
“More than a week for basic information or support. People sleeping in their cars and in tents because they weren’t provided proper shelter.
“People who have spent thousands of dollars and haven’t been given a dollar in financial aid. Some stacking on mountains of debt. People being given vouchers for grocery stores that are 300 kilometres away.
“At every turn, pure chaos and callous failure. Anger. Frustration. Hopelessness."
The fires menacing Saskatchewan are among many across Canada, forcing evaucations from British Columbia through to Ontario.
Both Manitoba and Saskatchewan have invoked states of emergency to help various levels of government deliver aid as they experience some of their worst fire seasons in recent years.
About 21,000 have been forced out of communities in Manitoba ahead of the fires, including all 5,000 residents of the city of Flin Flon and about 6,700 from Pimicikamak Cree Nation.
On Monday, Premier Wab Kinew’s government urged tourists to reconsider visiting the province for now as it strives to find hotel rooms or other shelters for evacuees.
Manitoba has about 15,000 hotel rooms in total.
The province has set up four congregate shelters for those who can’t find accommodations elsewhere.
The plumes of fire smoke have drifted across the country, prompted air quality warnings, and were expected to leave traces as far away as Europe.
Help is coming from other countries, even from Down Under.
Southern Highlands - New South Wales Rural Fire Service in Australia said a 96-personnel-strong Australian contingent of firefighters and specialists have deployed to Canada for five weeks.
"When our mates need help, Australia is there," Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on social media.
A post on social media platform X from the Australian high commissioner to Canada said the crews are headed to Alberta.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency
