150 evacuees displaced by Lac du Bonnet wildfire returning home Sunday

CBC

19-05-2025

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About 150 people displaced by the Lac du Bonnet wildfire are allowed to return home, the rural municipality's reeve said on Sunday.
The Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet issued an evacuation order on Tuesday, affecting about 1,000 residents. Two people were killed after getting trapped in the fire and dozens of homes have been destroyed.
The fire is more than 4,000 hectares in size and is still out of control, the most recent fire status report from the province shows.
About 850 residents who live north and east of this area are still under a mandatory evacuation order.
"We really appreciate their patience. I can tell you that there's a lot of people still out there working to extinguish these hotspots," said Loren Schinkel, reeve for the rural municipality.
Schinkel said residents' safety is the top priority as firefighters continue to battle the wildfire.
"We're taking it day by day here," he said.
Dry conditions return with cooler temperatures on the way
As of Sunday evening, there were 14 wildfires burning across Manitoba, according to updated fire data from the province.
David Phillips, a climatologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, says rain that hit parts of southern Manitoba since Thursday has likely helped firefighting efforts across the province.
While the rain was a "godsend," he said it's not enough to put out the fires. And he expects more dry weather to hit the province soon.
"It doesn't look like we're going to get any decent weather from a rain point of view for the next week. It looks like a dry period right across the same area …" he said.
However, seasonable temperatures from highs of 20 C and lows of 6 C will offer better firefighting conditions compared to the record-breaking heat recorded last week when some of the wildfires began.
"Some good news, but not great news," Phillips said.
B.C., Alberta firefighters join Nopiming park effort
A provincial spokesperson told CBC News on Sunday that as many as 20 buildings near Beresford Lake were damaged in the wildfire burning at Nopiming Provincial Park.
As of Sunday, that fire has been burning for six days, growing to more than 100,000 hectares in size, the most recent fire status report shows. It is still considered out of control.
The province said 21 firefighters from British Columbia have joined the battle against the Nopiming fire, with 41 more to come from Alberta tomorrow.
Timely rain keeps Ingolf fire from spreading: Ontario fire officer
At the Ontario border, cool and damp conditions have helped firefighters tackle the Ingolf fire.
Ontario's most recent fire data shows the wildfire is more than 30,000 hectares in size and is still out of control. But the recent rainfall means it hasn't grown since Thursday, said Ontario fire information officer Chris Marchand.
"This wet weather has been very timely in terms of keeping the fire in place long enough for us to bring firefighting resources into the area," Marchand said.
Officials there are in a "new phase" of their effort, shifting from defensive structural protection to offensive fire suppression now that it's safe enough to get near the fire perimeter, Marchand said.
Marchand said nearly 100 firefighters from British Columbia were expected to join them this weekend.