The wildfires in northern Saskatchewan are burning a hole in the wallets of outfitters.
“I don’t know what the exact number is but I’ve heard in the last couple of days there’s anywhere from 30 to 50 outfitters that have closed their doors just because of the fire problem,” said Harvey Kroll, president of the Saskatchewan Outfitters Association.
Kroll believes the closures are because there will be cancellations and they can’t get people in and out. He said the cancellations started in the middle of June and have continued.
“I would say that most of these guys have closed for the season.”
Kroll hasn’t spoken to some of the outfitters directly so there is a chance some might reopen if the wildfires are put out. He also calls this a historically bad situation.
“Just because of the area the fires are, it’s a big concentration of our guys,” said Kroll. “I would think it’s going to be probably the biggest devastation we’ve seen in our industry.”
Kroll could not say how many dollars would be lost but he called it huge.
BHilton@rawlco.com
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