Evacuated Red Sucker Lake residents return to community

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This article was published 02/07/2015 (3983 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It was a happy Canada Day for 232 residents of Red Sucker Lake First Nation who were home safely in their community with their homes intact.

The Red Sucker Lake residents were flown home on Tuesday following three nights at a Winnipeg hotel. They had been evacuated on Saturday and Sunday for safety reasons due to the proximity of fires to their community, located about 700 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg.

Fire crews from Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship successfully battled a blaze that came within one kilometre of the homes.

“They (residents) are all back and that fire has been dealt with. It’s definitely a positive when you can return everyone to their homes because nobody likes to be displaced,” said Gary Friesen, manager of the wildfire program with Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship.

“Our crews just worked on it and put it out. We’re fighting new fires every day so that’s the goal, to get them when they’re small. When they’re big, they’re not only harder to put out but way more costly.”

Most of the community of about 800 remained in their homes. The 232 individuals evacuated were mainly children, elderly people and those with medical conditions, ranked by priority according to information from health authorities and the community itself.

Lodging for the group was paid for by the federal government while expenses for basics like food, clothing, diapers, laundry facilities and medical care were covered in partnership by the Red Cross, Health Canada and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority.

Red Cross spokesman Jason Small said the last flight returning Red Sucker Lake residents departed from Winnipeg at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

“We’re very happy to work on behalf of the federal government to help the people of Red Sucker Lake when they needed it,” Small said, noting the Red Cross has an agreement in place since April 1 with the federal government to provide evacuation services to all First Nations.

Friesen said there are still 70 active fires burning in Manitoba, nearly all of which were started by lightning. On Wednesday afternoon, firefighting crews from Quebec and Wisconsin arrived for additional support. There are now about 500 firefighters battling blazes in Manitoba.

“The crews are working with the support of bulldozers and water bombers (aircraft) on some larger fires between The Pas and Grand Rapids,” he said. “Right now it’s the driest (in The Pas-Grand Rapids area) and there’s a lot of timber values and hydro values in those areas.”

On Thursday, Friesen said the year-to-date total number of fires is 274, which is slightly above the 263 average for this date.

“That number (274) is a bit misleading because we got the bulk of those fires since last Friday so it’s been very compressed,” he said.

In the past week there have been similar outbreaks in Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Friesen said those fires, rather than the Manitoba ones, were responsible for the smoky skies filling Winnipeg during the past few days and the accompanying air quality problems.

The pattern of blazes in Manitoba is unusual because it’s so widespread, Friesen said. Typically, outbreaks of fire take place in one region at a time, but fires broke out across the province last weekend. The recent hot, dry weather had created ideal conditions for lightning fires in Manitoba and elsewhere.

ashley.prest@freepress.mb.ca

—with files from Aidan Geary and Jessica Botelho-Urbanski