Manitoba declares state of emergency in provincial park due to fires

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew declared a state of emergency Thursday to aid the evacuation of a provincial park due to wildfires, one day after the bodies of two people were discovered.

He did not provide more details about the man and woman who died in the fire in the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet.

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But he said the deaths mean officials are taking the danger seriously and want additional powers to enforce evacuation orders.

An evacuation order issued for Whiteshell Provincial Park says people were to be out by Thursday afternoon. There are 239 permanent homes in the area.

“It doesn’t get more serious than loss of life and in this case we lost two fellow Manitobans,” said Kinew, adding flags have been lowered to half-mast at the legislature.

“We’re heading into a long weekend that is going to be challenging. We have a flood warning on the west side of the province and numerous out-of-control fires on the eastern side of the province.”

He urged people to obey evacuation orders and — even though there is no provincial fire ban — asked people to avoid campfires and fireworks over the long weekend.

Officials said there were 21 active fires, and the Lac du Bonnet blaze remains out of control.

There have been about 80 wildfires in Manitoba so far this season, nearly double the average for this time of year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2025.