Saskatchewan getting military personnel, helicopters to help fight wildfires

Saskatchewan is set to get help from Ottawa as dozens of wildfires burn in the province. Federal Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski says she has approved a request for federal assistance and that Armed Forces personnel and helicopters are being deployed.

It comes after Saskatchewan's public safety minister, Tim McLeod, said he wrote to Olszewski asking for up to 300 crew members to mop up blazes.

He said the province requested helicopters for bucketing and to move crews, and it also needs water haulers and sprinklers to protect communities.

Premier Scott Moe's Saskatchewan Party government had previously refused asking for federal aid, saying Ottawa did not have what Saskatchewan needed. The province is reporting 50 active wildfires, including 14 uncontained.