Just as the province braces for another heatwave, the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency is easing fire bans in the south.

The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency said in a news release that as of 11 a.m. Wednesday morning that in general, south of Prince Albert, it will be up to individual municipalities, First Nation communities, rural municipalities, and parks to determine if a fire ban is needed.

The provincial fire ban will remain in effect for all Crown lands, provincial parks, provincial recreation sites, and the Northern Saskatchewan Administration District located north of the provincial forest boundary, including the 4.5 km burn notification area.

Minister of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety Paul Merriman says, “While we are modifying the current fire ban, the situation is dependent on weather, temperature, soil conditions and overall fire risk.”

As of noon Wednesday, there are 95 wildfires burning in the province with 11 of them not contained. There have been 367 fires so far this year and 248 is the five-year average.