MN–S Welcomes All Northern Wildfire Evacuees at Batoche Festival Grounds

Press Release

June 5, 2025 – Treaty 6 Territory and Heartland of the Métis, Batoche, SK – With the continued warm weather and high winds, an increasing number of people in the northeastern region of the province are being forced to flee their homes, their belongings, and their livelihoods.

The Métis Nation–Saskatchewan (MN–S) government is responding to the need for refuge by opening the Batoche Festival Grounds to all northern wildfire evacuees looking for a secure place to wait out the current situation.

Evacuees are welcome and should take the following steps:

⦁ Call 855-559-5502 (Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency) to register your destination
⦁ To register for Batoche, call 1-877-MétisSK (ext. 9)

MN–S President Glen McCallum said, “The Batoche grounds are open to anyone who needs a safe place. In northern Saskatchewan, when you take any community, they’re mixed: Métis, First Nations, and non-Indigenous. Wildfires have no borders, and we’re not going to create borders, it’s just a matter of fine-tuning the partnership we have with Métis, First Nations, and non-Indigenous people. As always at Batoche, there’s room for everyone.”

As of 8:30 this morning, there were more than 100 people on the Festival Grounds, in various living spaces. On site we are offering trappers tents outfitted with cots, wi-fi service to keep in touch with family, traditional food, and cultural activities.

For anyone who wants to help the Batoche emergency relief efforts, a donation centre has been established in Saskatoon at CUMFI, 315 Avenue M S. The current high-priority needs for evacuees are: Toiletries (such as tooth brushes, tooth paste, and feminine hygiene products), diapers, baby wipes, baby formula, and clean bedding. Other priority needs include: masks, air purifiers, and work gloves. The donations made at CUMFI intended for Batoche will be delivered accordingly.

The MN–S government continues to work with its partners provincially and federally to ensure the resources are there to provide for northern evacuees as necessary, for as long as the need exists.

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About Métis Nation–Saskatchewan:

Métis Nation–Saskatchewan (MN–S) is built on a foundation of Métis identity, culture, values and language. Empowered by the Métis citizens of Saskatchewan, MN–S works to advance Métis rights and strengthen capacity. MN–S represents the political, socioeconomic, cultural and educational interests of Métis in the province through an elected representative system at local, regional and provincial levels. Social Media Links: @MNSask, @metisnationsask

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