A relief fund has been set up by the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA) to help ranchers affected by the recent wildfires in the province.
Grass fires on Oct. 17 near Leader, Burstall and Tompkins forced the evacuation of hundreds of people and destroyed thousands of hectares of land.
READ MORE: Saskatchewan dealing with aftermath of wildfires and wind
Officials said roughly 750 cattle, worth nearly $1 million, died in the fire or had to be euthanized.
SSGA president Shane Jahnke said the fires, along with the drought this summer, have been catastrophic, with some ranchers losing half their herds.
“The fires destroyed animals, buildings, fields, feed and everything else in their way,” Jahnke said in a press release.
“With winter coming, there’s a lot of people who need help.”
Jahnke said they are calling not only on SSGA members, but everyone, to help the ranching community.
“The drought conditions that fuelled the fires had already caused feed shortages,” Jahnke said.
“Now producers need to buy winter feed to replace the grass and the bales they lost to the fires.”
READ MORE: Open fire ban in Saskatchewan south of Highway 16
Contributions can be made online at the SSGA’s website or by contacting the association at 306-757-8523.
SSGA officials said producers can contact them at the same number to report what help they need and that they don’t need to be SSGA members to qualify for help.
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