Moe makes surprise visit to fire-ravaged community

DENARE BEACH – A Saskatchewan village decimated by wildfire — and angry with the provincial government’s response to it — had a surprise visitor Friday – Premier Scott Moe.

Karen Thomson, a councillor for the village of Denare Beach, said they were surprised by Moe’s visit, as they were only expecting cabinet ministers to attend the scheduled update meeting.

She says she talked with Moe about ways the province can support mental health needs for residents, along with financial assistance to help with the rebuild.

The councillor says the absence of Moe during the fire this summer was strongly felt by residents who have condemned the province for how it responded.

“That’s kind of the elephant in the room,” Thomson said in an interview.

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“Here we are today, about four months post-fire and Scott Moe is here.

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“We’re appreciative of him taking that step and coming to see us (but) I’m not going to mince words: we would have liked to have seen it sooner.”

Moe’s office did not advertise he was heading to the community, located near the Manitoba boundary close to Flin Flon. His office also did not immediately confirm the visit after it occurred Friday.

A raging wildfire tore through Denare Beach, a community of 700, in June, burning down about half the community.

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Residents have questioned why it appeared crews took so long to fight the fire near the community and have argued there was a lack of equipment. Almost half of the province’s water bomber fleet was grounded during the worst of wildfire season where 10,000 were forced to flee.

The province has said it deployed crews to Denare Beach as quickly as it could to battle the blaze, which was described as a “firestorm.”

Thomson said Moe also told the village to get involved in the FireSmart program, an initiative that encourages municipalities to better prepare for future wildfires. Some FireSmart activities include creating fuel breaks to prevent fires from getting too close to communities.

“Those discussions (Moe) will have with the federal government to see that things can be put in place and funding be made available so those types of programs can happen,” Thomson said.

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“Nothing was solidified, there were no signatures to put to paper, but the discussions are there and will be ongoing.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2025.

— By Jeremy Simes in Regina

&copy 2025 The Canadian Press

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