Flin Flon dodges destruction but not out of danger

The town of Flin Flon dodged structural damage from raging wildfires over the weekend, but the community’s mayor says the fight is far from over.

“I left the community thinking I was never going to see my home again, never see Flin Flon again, so it’s a huge relief, those firefighters have just been absolutely incredible,” George Fontaine said Sunday.

“I think there’s a chance, and it just all depends on Mother Nature of course, but nobody should be going under the illusion that we’re out of the danger in this at all.”

During his daily briefing with wildfire officials, he received news that some cottages in areas around the town had been burned and parts of the town had lost power.

He was also told that while the weather has been milder in the area, helping in the fight, incoming windy conditions could change things quickly.

“So really, everybody’s sitting on pins and needles,” he said.

At last count, the 50,000-hectare wildfire near Flin Flon continued to rage out of control, along with 10 other major fires across Manitoba.

A late afternoon update from Flin Flon deputy mayor Allison Dallas-Funk on social media said winds picked up to an “extreme degree” on Sunday and firefighters lost the equivalent of 12 hours of firefighting progress.

Fire crews were ramping up their efforts in the Bakers Narrows area to defend the airport and nearby structures, while firefighters elsewhere were working to ensure flames did not breach the perimeter highway of Flin Flon, Dallas-Funk wrote.

The town’s 5,000 residents were hastily evacuated Thursday and Friday as the fire, which started in Creighton, Sask. last Monday, came within a few hundred meters of the community in some spots.

Five days into the province-wide state of emergency communities continue to be evacuated owing to wildfire conditions.

Bakers Narrows Provincial Park, Wanless and surrounding areas in northwestern Manitoba were put under mandatory evacuation orders, adding to the growing list of northern communities emptied to escape wildfires.

“So really, everybody’s sitting on pins and needles.”– Flin Flon mayor George Fontaine

Premier Wab Kinew declared the month-long state of emergency last Wednesday, prompting the evacuation of more than 17,000 northern Manitobans to various communities where they are staying in congregate shelters, hotels and with friends or loved ones.

Congregate shelters have been set up in Winnipeg, Thompson, Winkler and Portage la Prairie.

Evacuees continue to arrive in Winnipeg, but the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs is alleging some can’t find any place to stay.

“Thousands of First Nations citizens, including Elders, children, and individuals with serious medical conditions, are currently seeking refuge. Many have arrived in Winnipeg and other locations with nowhere to go and limited access to necessities,” the AMC said in a news release on Saturday.

Manitoba Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal and Chief Justice Martel Popescul of the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench announced Sunday a joint education session in Winnipeg this week would be cancelled to free up hotel space for evacuees.

“The courts are mindful of the serious and devastating impact these fires are having on communities in both provinces and of the institutional need to provide support to the efforts already underway,” an emailed statement from the justices said.

Meantime, Lori Forbes, the emergency coordinator for the RM of Kelsey, said Cranberry-Portage residents are feeling fatigued after being ordered to evacuate the community a second time in one month because of wildfires.

Forbes, too, is fatigued; she has been coordinating all things related to wildfires since May 3.

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“There was a couple days in between that you could take a breath, and things started up again,” she said. “You just have to keep moving forward one step at a time and and stay organized, and don’t let the chaos get to you too much.”

The community was ordered out Saturday morning after fire damaged multiple Manitoba Hydro poles causing power outages, and the flames blocked Highway 10 north of the Sturgeon Landing turn off and south of Egg Lake making supply delivery difficult.

The community is expected to be in the dark for the next several days.

As mandatory evacuations from Pimicikamak Cree Nation continued Sunday, Chief David Monias also reported some areas in his community were experiencing power outages.

Some community members who were evacuated were travelling as far as Niagara Falls to find shelter, Monias wrote in an update on social media.

Some roads in and out of the community reopened Sunday after flare-ups shuttered some highways. Travel out of the community was permitted to continue, Monias wrote.

“You just have to keep moving forward one step at a time and and stay organized, and don’t let the chaos get to you too much.”– Lori Forbes, the emergency coordinator for the RM of Kelsey

There is a chance of rain in some areas of the province this week, but the precipitation could be accompanied by thunderstorms and the risk of more lightning starts, the province said in its Sunday fire bulletin.

More than 120 U.S. firefighters are expected to land in Manitoba by Wednesday to assist in the firefighting efforts and about 60 from Quebec are expected Tuesday.

The crews will bring relief to the wildfire fighters currently on the ground from Alberta, British Columbia, Parks Canada, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre communications officer Awa Cissé said Sunday.

Two helicopters from Colombia are joining the battle, as well.

The province is still seeking more help from its international partners and is waiting on responses for their requests, Cissé said.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca

Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer

Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.

Every piece of reporting Nicole 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.