Evacuated Traverse Bay residents return home after grass fire

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This article was published 27/04/2025 (223 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Hundreds of people evacuated from a beach community on the shores of Lake Winnipeg returned to their homes Sunday morning, after a fast-moving grass fire forced them to flee the night before.

The Rural Municipality of Alexander — located about 100 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg — issued an evacuation notice for homes located in Traverse Bay, along on the southwest basin of Lake Winnipeg, after a fire started around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.

“It happened very quickly,” the RM’s chief administrative officer, Gisèle Smith, said by phone Sunday.

“It was too dangerous for people to remain.”

Smith described how high winds fueled the flames, causing them to torch trees and blacken about 60 hectares. Fire crews issued an evacuation order around 7 p.m., encompassing an area between Sunrise Road at Traverse Bay Road North, toward Lake Winnipeg; and Traverse Bay Road East at Pitt Road, toward Lake Winnipeg, she said.

Between 300 and 400 people were affected by the order, which remained in effect until 9:35 a.m. Sunday.

The Victoria Beach Fire Department was the first to respond to the blaze, with further support coming from the Powerview-Pine Falls and East Beaches fire crews.

The Manitoba Wildfire Service and RCMP also assisted.

Evacuees were sent to the Grand Marais Recreation Centre, and given until 10 p.m. to retrieve pets or essential items from their homes. They spent the night with friends or in area motels, she said.

Fire crews remained on scene overnight and into the afternoon Sunday. They will likely continue to monitor the area for potential hot spots and flare ups in the coming days, Smith said.

The municipality has declared a local state of emergency, which will remain in effect until May 2. A fire ban is also in place, Smith said.

Favourable weather conditions and the unified efforts of fire crews prevented the blaze from spreading beyond control. Nobody was injured and no homes were damaged, RM of Alexander Mayor Jack Brisco said.

“Mother Nature even participated last night because that wind, it slowed down. If it whipped up, anything could have happened,” Brisco said.

The mayor, who lives near the area affected by the fire, described the evacuation as “very scary.”

The cause of the fire is unconfirmed, but it is believed to have been preventable, Brisco said.

He said his community’s emergency alert system worked well and allowed officials to quickly communicate with residents.

The RM of Alexander is working with the province to develop a wildfire protection plan for the community. Brisco hopes to clear road allowances that would allow emergency crews and heavy equipment to access densely forested areas in the event they catch fire, he said.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca