Snow Lake prepares as wildfire races closer

Firefighters watered down sections of Snow Lake to protect the northern Manitoba town from an out-of-control blaze that was about one kilometre away late Friday afternoon.

Mayor Ron Scott, who is among Snow Lake’s evacuees, said the wind direction was expected to shift to the northwest in the afternoon and push the fire closer to the community.

“It’s definitely going to be a major concern in the next 12 to 24 hours,” he told the Free Press by phone from The Pas at about 1 p.m. “Everyone is trying to prep the town as much as possible.”

He said the fire was about two kilometres away at that time. At 4 p.m., a provincial fire bulletin said the 22,790-hectare blaze was one kilometre from the town.

Water bombers and bucket-equipped helicopters were used in a bid to control the fire. Sprinklers were set up to protect buildings in town.

“Keep the faith,” Scott said to about 1,000 residents who were forced to flee their homes July 10 for the second time this wildfire season. “We’ve got an awesome team up there. We’ll cross our fingers and hope for the best.”

High winds and dry conditions throughout Manitoba created a very high fire-danger level Friday, the province said.

The fire west of Snow Lake, about 690 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, was caused by a lightning strike and detected July 1.

Scott said the blaze became very intense while it moved closer to town Thursday, despite the efforts of fire crews.

“With the winds, they had a major outbreak that crossed the lake proper, so it expanded quite a bit to the north and the east,” he said.

The fire moved along a hydro corridor, resulting in the loss of power to the Lalor Mine site, the town said in a Facebook post.

Power was restored in town, while the mine used a diesel-powered backup as of Friday morning, the post said.

The town said fire crews were inspecting and watering down areas to prevent embers and hot spots from hitting the community.

Rain and thunderstorms were possible.

Scott said firefighters from municipal departments across Manitoba joined the effort.

On Thursday, Kristin Hayward, assistant deputy minister of the Manitoba Wildfire Service, said Snow Lake was “ready to be defended” if the fire moved closer to the town.

Sprinklers and a quick response by fire crews helped limit damage at the Lalor Mine site, she said.

The Town of Snow Lake said crews “did a great job” to protect the mine for most of Thursday.

A separate out-of-control wildfire, also sparked by lightning, damaged one home and about half a dozen vacant houses when it spread into the north side of Leaf Rapids Wednesday night.

Fire crews had to temporarily retreat to safety because the fire was so intense. Essential workers left the community.

Most of Leaf Rapids had no power as of Friday afternoon, the town said in a social-media post.

The town said fire activity increased Friday, while firefighters from Manitoba and Mexico extinguished hot spots. Firefighters from Quebec were expected to join them.

The blaze was an estimated 8,000 hectares.

More than 300 residents of Leaf Rapids, about 975 km northwest of Winnipeg, were forced to leave July 8, while several fires burned in the area.

One of the fires, also out of control, had consumed 30,305 hectares and was four kilometres southwest of Leaf Rapids, the province said.

The wildfire service reported 121 active fires Friday afternoon.

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All of Nopiming Provincial Park in eastern Manitoba opened to permanent residents, cottagers and commercial operators as of Friday, even though a wildfire continues to smoulder in the region.

While Bird Lake campground is open, all other campgrounds will remain closed for the rest of the season, the province said.

Backcountry campsites at Shoe Lake, and all water routes and hiking trails remain closed.

A provincewide state of emergency is in effect until Aug. 8.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Chris Kitching
Reporter

Chris Kitching is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He began his newspaper career in 2001, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto and London, England, along the way. After returning to Winnipeg, he joined the Free Press in 2021, and now covers a little bit of everything for the newspaper. Read more about Chris.

Every piece of reporting Chris produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.