A wildfire burns in northern Manitoba near Flin Flon.David Lipnowski/The Canadian Press
Wildfires have burned through more than a million hectares of forest in Manitoba this year, prompting Premier Wab Kinew to declare a second provincewide state of emergency and call upon the military to help once again with thousands of evacuations from fly-in communities.
The province, which was under a state of emergency until late last month, made the latest declaration Thursday. More than 12,600 people across the province are now being told to leave their homes, many for the second time.
“We really want to underscore just how serious this wildfire season is,” Mr. Kinew told a news conference at the Manitoba legislature, as emergency alerts chimed loudly on cellphones.
“We need access to more facilities to be able to shelter this large number of Manitobans, who are being forced to flee their homes.”
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Across the country, several provinces have experienced an aggressive and earlier start to the wildfire season. Both Manitoba and Saskatchewan had declared simultaneous states of emergency, as dozens of large fires also spread in northwestern Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.
On Thursday, Saskatchewan, which is not issuing another state of emergency, began airlifting about 700 people from a northern hamlet, Patuanak, to safer communities.
With more than 100 fires burning in Manitoba, mostly in the north, the federal government has agreed to send Hercules aircraft from the Canadian Armed Forces to fly residents from several remote communities toward safer areas.
Manitoba’s wildfire service has recorded more than 250 fires this year, well above the average of 194 for this time.
“This is the worst year in our 30-year electronic record,” said Kristin Hayward, assistant deputy minister of Manitoba Natural Resources and Indigenous Futures, referring to the million hectares that have burned so far.
In mid-May, before the summer officially started, two people were killed because of a large blaze near Lac du Bonnet in Manitoba’s cottage country, where dozens of properties were destroyed.
On Thursday, Christine Stevens, assistant deputy minister for Manitoba’s emergency management, said nine communities are under mandatory evacuation orders.
“We’re asking that if you’ve left your home or the area that’s been evacuated that you not return,” she said. “It’s essential that workers are able to focus on fighting the fire, and it can put you and first responders at risk.”
The town of Snow Lake, 600 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, issued a mandatory evacuation order for the second time this season.
Snow Lake Mayor Ron Scott said it’s frustrating to have to leave again, but a blaze is within 16 kilometres of the community, and wind is pushing it toward the town.
“We anticipated that this was going to be a very long, painful summer with the very dry conditions,” Mr. Scott said.
“There’s fires all over the place.”
In Manitoba’s northeastern region, the fly-in community of 4,000 people in Garden Hill First Nation is also being threatened by a wildfire. The military began to airlift residents early Thursday before the province’s emergency declaration.
David Monias, the chief of Pimicikamak Cree Nation, said waving goodbye for a second time to members from his northern Manitoba community near Cross Lake has been difficult. “So many of them had just finally gotten back home,” he said in an interview.
“We’ve seen terrible conditions here. And even with any rain, there’s lightning starting fires. I just hope there’s enough space for my people to find in the cities.”
At least 600 Manitoba residents near Lynn Lake were ordered last week to flee for the second time, while about 350 residents in Leaf Rapids were told to leave earlier this week.
Meanwhile, around 13,000 people from the Manitoba city of Thompson are being asked to pre-register in case an evacuation becomes mandatory.
Mr. Kinew said most evacuees will be temporarily housed in Winnipeg, with the vast majority heading toward makeshift shelters with cots. Hotels have made rooms available, but those are being reserved for elders and people with high medical needs.
There are currently no plans to send additional evacuees out of the province, Mr. Kinew said, though he added that Alberta has offered support.
As of last week, around 1,400 people from northern Manitoba remained more than 2,000 kilometres away in Niagara Falls, Ont., where they have been since June, as the province struggled to find lodgings for them.
More than 510 wildfires are burning in Canada, with at least 140 of those deemed out of control, as of early Thursday.
Researchers from Environment and Climate Change Canada have warned that dryness, little precipitation and warmer-than-normal temperatures are expected to ripen conditions for more wildfires later this summer.
With a report from The Canadian Press