3 of 4 Island Lake communities under states of emergency due to Manitoba wildfires
CBC
Two more communities in Manitoba's Island Lake region are preparing to evacuate vulnerable residents away from wildfires spreading out of control around them.
St. Theresa Point and Wasagamack First Nations have declared local states of emergencies in the last 24 hours, said Grand Chief Alex McDougall of Anisininew Okimawin, an organization that represents four nations in the region.
Vulnerable residents, including elderly people, children and people with underlying medical conditions are expected to start being evacuated from the two First Nations on Monday, Chief Walter Harper said.
Five-hundred people will be evacuated from the communities, said McDougall.
Two wildfires, one of them burning about 16 kilometres away west that started in recent days, have blanketed Wasagamack with smoke, resulting in deteriorating air quality.
The First Nation, about 375 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, has been monitoring them by looking at satellite imaging and sending crews on the ground, but firefighting activity has been limited.
Weather conditions have been unfavourable in recent days. The First Nation is hoping for some rain on Sunday, but Harper said they do not believe it will be of much help to douse the flames.
About 2,300 people live in the community, Harper said. The First Nation chief spoke with Premier Wab Kinew on Sunday and said the community is expecting support from the province.
"I need lots of tobacco offering to do a prayer for the rain to kind of put out the fire," the chief said. "We need firefighters too, we need water bombers."
Wasagamack First Nation doesn't have an airport and the closest landing strips are in St. Theresa Point, Man., and Garden Hill, Man., said Vice-Chief Robert Harper.
With heavy smoke drifting from the wildfires, there are concerns planes can't land, grounding Wasagamack's evacuation plans.
"There's a lot of people with health conditions here asking if they're being sent out," he said. "There's smoke no matter which way the wind blows, except for the northeast."
Harper said officials are "trying to get ahead of what we know is coming."
Grand Chief Alex McDougall said the communities in the Island Lake region have been in conversations with Indigenous Services Canada and the Red Cross. He said there are concerns about the health of residents, especially with deteriorating air quality.
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