Widespread fires in southwest Saskatchewan claim livestock

Oct 20, 2017

Vet reports estimate the fires left some 400 livestock dead

Staff Reporter

Fires wreaked havoc in southwest Saskatchewan earlier this week, leaving hundreds of livestock dead.

Veterinarian reports estimate that 400 animals died or were euthanized as a result of the fires, according to a CBC news article yesterday.

“The loss of these animals is very difficult to cope with,” Grant Zalinko, executive director of the Ministry of Agriculture’s livestock branch, said to CBC.

The current toll does not include livestock that remain at large. Any producer who has livestock that may have escaped the wildfires but are still unaccounted for can call the RCMP or the Ministry of Agriculture’s livestock services.

The province’s Farm Stress Line or the ministry’s knowledge centre are available to help producers, if needed.

The communities of Leader, Burstall and Liebenthal have been evacuated because of the encroaching fires, according to the article.

In Burstall, 30,000 hectares have been burned and, near Tompkins, another 4,000 hectares have been scorched.

Steve Roberts, the province’s director of wildfire management, announced a fire ban which remains in effect.

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