Denare Beach residents hoping for better communication after SPSA VP retires

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In particular, Thompson points to comments made by Roberts in an article back in August of last year where Roberts had praised the SPSA’s efforts during the 2025 wildfire season. 

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“When you consider that most communities were impacted by wildfires this year, our success rate and ability to protect people is extraordinary.” 

That comment has not sat well with the people of Denare Beach, who watched half of their community burn on 2025. 

“If you were to ask anyone in Denare Beach, whether they lost their home or not but especially those who suffered losses, that the efforts made for Denare Beach would not qualify as extraordinary. That was just something that stuck out from that interview almost a year ago, and I think that those remarks were just a little insensitive.” 

In their statement announcing Roberts’ upcoming retirement, the SPSA said that they will begin the search for a new vice-president immediately. 

“The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency will commence a search for a replacement immediately. The successful candidate will be in a position to help implement the 11 immediate actions directed by the Government of Saskatchewan in response to the MNP Review of the 2025 Wildfire Season.” 

When it comes to where the new hire can improve the most, Thompson wants to see better communication from those being affected by the wildfire situation. Thomspon said that there was a lot of vital information from local people that could have helped fight the fires, a sentiment that’s similar to what some members of the public said earlier this summer when dealing with the Lobstick Fire near MacDowall and Shellbrook.

“They need to be able to communicate with us and as well, they need to be able to listen when we’re communicating with them. That’s paramount to any success. We just felt that they weren’t listening to us when we were calling for help, and I think that was one of the epic failures on their part. We’ve got a lot of local knowledge here that wasn’t being listened to.” 

Denare Beach has still not seen all of its residents return home from last year’s devastation, but Thomspon said that spirits are high now as rebuilding continues.