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Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew ordered a provincewide state of emergency Wednesday as his province struggles with a series of crippling wildfires, mainly in the remote north.
Kinew says he has spoken to Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has agreed to send in the military.
He says the fires have forced 17,000 people across several communities to flee in what he calls the largest such exodus in living memory in Manitoba.
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“Pray for Flin Flon, pray for Pimicikamak, pray for Mathias Colomb, pray for Cross Lake, pray for everybody in Manitoba who’s out of their homes right now,” he told a late afternoon news conference.
https://twitter.com/WabKinew/status/1927898103379546410
The evacuations include all 5,000 residents of the city of Flin Flon.
Kinew said when cottage owners and other nearby residents are added in, the number rises to 6,000.
Those residents were told just hours earlier to head south with their essentials, as they were warned a day earlier they might have to flee on a moment’s notice.
https://twitter.com/WabKinew/status/1927869105798865024
“I can tell you everybody has to be out by midnight and that includes me,” Flin Flon Mayor George Fontaine said in an interview.
“I’m busy packing a couple of things and everybody is getting as organized as we can.”
He said people plan to take Highway 10 as it’s the only route out.
“That ends up in Winnipeg so we’ll see what happens,” Fontaine said.
Flin Flon’s Facebook page urges residents to take “Provincial Road #10, heading towards The Pas.” They warn of some visibility issues and said no one should “drive through PR #39 directly towards Thompson.”
People can contact 2-1-1 for Winnipeg shelters or make accommodations with family and friends.
More information will be posted to the City of Flin Flon’s Facebook page regarding transportation for those who require it.
Flin Flon is 630 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg.
Earlier Wednesday, it began sending hospital patients out of the city ahead of the fire, which is menacing the region from the north.
Evacuees were urged to stay with family and friends, and earlier in the day, Kinew said public facilities, like rec centres, may be asked to open their doors to help out.
He has said hotels in his province are already at capacity with fire refugees and convention attendees.
The fire began Monday across the boundary in nearby Creighton, Sask., and has since exploded in size.
Crews struggled early on to contain the fire as water bombers were grounded due to a drone flying in the area.
Creighton Mayor Bruce Fidler said the 1,200 or so residents have been told to leave town as soon as possible.
He said wildfire officials from Manitoba and Saskatchewan told him the fire could move closer by Thursday and cut off the roads outside of town.
(Town of Creighton/Facebook)
“We declared a state of emergency and put out a mandatory evacuation so that we can get as many people out of the area as possible to be safe and before the roads become impassable,” Fidler said in an interview.
He said Highway 10 in Manitoba is open and Saskatchewan has opened up Highway 106 temporarily for people to make their way to Prince Albert.
Three northern First Nation communities in Sask. declare state of emergency
The Lac La Ronge Indian Band, Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and Montreal Lake Cree Nation have declared a joint state of emergency in response to the wildfire threat in northeast Sask.
According to the joint release, the wildfires impacting these communities have grown over 75,000 hectares in size and continue to spread due to dry conditions and shifting winds.
Several communities like Pelican Narrows, South End and Denare Beach are under threat, with evacuation orders in place or imminent.
Some evacuation routes have been cut off, forcing emergency teams to evacuate people by boat and helicopter.
The declaration demands immediate action from both provincial and federal governments including:
- The deployment of additional firefighters, including Type 3 personnel.
- The immediate dispatch of water bombers and air support to northern
Saskatchewan. - Fair and equitable distribution of emergency resources to First Nations
communities. - Emergency accommodations for evacuees and incoming response crews.
- Direct meetings with Premier Scott Moe, federal Ministers, and Members of
Parliament.
“First Nations lives matter. We stand in full support of this joint declaration and demand a just and immediate response,” said Chief Bobby Cameron of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations.
Carla Beck and Sask. NDP calling for Scott Moe to declare state of emergency
On Wednesday evening, leader of the Saskatchewan NDP, Carla Beck, took to X calling for Premier Scott Moe to announce a state of emergency in the province.
https://twitter.com/CarlaBeckSK/status/1927898216160428306
“We’re calling on Premier Scott Moe and the Minister of Public Safety to immediately declare a province-wide state of emergency and commit to daily public briefings to ensure all essential — potentially lifesaving — information reaches people impacted by this wildfire crisis in Saskatchewan’s North,” Beck said on X.
She said the NDP have been attending meetings with leaders in the North for much of the day and they are “unanimous” in their calls for clear communication and support.
“Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, in response to wildfires in that province, has already ordered a provincewide state of emergency and received assurances of emergency military aid from Ottawa. Premier Scott Moe and the Sask. Party government must immediately do the same,” she said.
— By Aaron Sousa in Edmonton and Jeremy Simes in Regina
— with files from 980 CJME
