Winnipeg has opened its doors to thousands of evacuees fleeing crippling wildfires that have prompted a provincewide state of emergency in Manitoba.
The fires have forced 17,000 people from their homes in remote communities and First Nations, including 6,000 in and around the city of Flin Flon.
Premier Wab Kinew says he believes it’s Manitoba’s largest such exodus in living memory.
Kinew has said he spoke to Prime Minister Mark Carney, who agreed to deploy the military to help with evacuation flights to Winnipeg.
There was little to no visible foot traffic at the main evacuation centre at the Billy Mosienko Arena in Winnipeg, but security kept media from going inside.
Other evacuees will be housed at larger facilities such as recreation centres and soccer fields.
In northern Saskatchewan, three First Nations also declared a joint state of emergency in response to escalating wildfires. The Lac La Ronge Indian Band, Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation and Montreal Lake Cree Nation cite “critical shortages” in firefighting resources, personnel and air support.
Late Wednesday, a mandatory evacuation was issued for Chipewyan Lake, Alta., west of Fort McMurray. The Municipal District of Opportunity said people in the northern community were to head to the Lakeview Sports Centre in Wabasca.
Residents of Red Earth Creek, Alta., were asked to evacuate immediately early Thursday morning and take shelter in the Baytex Energy Center in Peace River.
The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, posted on social media Wednesday night praise for first responders racing to battle the fires in Manitoba and the rest of the Prairies.
Woodhouse Nepinak said she’d been in contact with First Nations chiefs and she will meet with the prime minister today.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2025.
