‘It's all just huge wasteland'
Liane Ross-Martin was at a loss for words when she returned to her family's cottage lot Wednesday and saw — for the first time — the devastation caused by a deadly wildfire.
She said the cottage on Lac du Bonnet was one of 18 properties in the Wendigo Road area to be destroyed by a fast-moving fire May 13.
'It was devastating. It was like nothing you could ever imagine,' the Winnipeg resident said Thursday. 'It's all just huge wasteland.'
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Before and after: Liane Ross-Martin said her family's cottage was one of 18 properties that were destroyed by a wildfire in the Wendigo Beach area of the RM of Lac du Bonnet on May 13.
Owners of permanent and seasonal residences were escorted to the area before the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet lifted its last remaining evacuation order related to that fire.
Amid hugs and tears, people surveyed the destruction and took time to remember RM residents Sue and Richard Nowell, who died when they became trapped by the blaze.
'They were in our hearts and minds,' said cottage owner Brad Wood, who was in disbelief when he saw the devastation. 'There was no way to be fully prepared for what we ended up seeing.'
About 28 properties were destroyed in multiple areas of the municipality. Wood and Ross-Martin are seasonal residents whose families built cottages as future permanent homes.
Wood was at his cottage when flames began to rapidly spread toward the area May 13. He said he wasn't aware of the fire until a neighbour, who was alerted by a friend, told him to get out.
Nearly 20 minutes later, while driving away, Wood pulled over and saw a huge plume of black smoke 'in line' with the area where cottages were destroyed, he said.
He is among the Wendigo Road property owners who've formed a committee. They want to be included in any review of the response to the fire, including the use or timing of emergency notifications and evacuation orders, to determine if anything can be improved.
They also want a say in a 'major' environmental cleanup in the fire's aftermath, Wood said.
'We want to have a voice at the table when this is reviewed, and try to collectively come up with solutions,' he said.
The property owners, who are in the early stages of insurance claims, want a government disaster financial assistance program to help Manitobans affected by wildfires, said Wood, who lives in the RM of St. Clements.
The Manitoba Wildfire Service reported 13 active wildfires, mostly in eastern and northern areas. Firefighters made progress on a 100,000-hectare blaze in the Bird River and Nopiming Provincial Park area.
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Brad Wood's cottage in the RM of Lac du Bonnet, along with several others, was reduced to rubble and ashes after a wildfire rapidly spread through the area May 13.
The RM of Lac du Bonnet ended its last evacuation zone related to that fire. The Municipality of Alexander allowed some residents to return. An evacuation order remained in effect for areas east of Poplar Bay.
All of Nopiming and most of Whiteshell Provincial Park, where a separate fire was along the Manitoba-Ontario boundary, were still closed.
In the north, crews were fighting two newer fires near Pimicikamak Cree Nation, which prepared an evacuation readiness plan, and one that had spread to about 1,400 hectares north of Lynn Lake since May 7.
Lynn Lake Mayor Brandon Dulewich said sprinklers were set up to protect cabins and permanent homes at Burge Lake and Zed provincial parks, and Little Brightsands Lake.
About 90 properties, mostly seasonal, are located in those areas, he said.
Burge Lake residents were told to be prepared to leave at short notice.
'The weariness and not knowing what's to come is definitely taking its toll on the citizens of Lynn Lake,' said Dulewich, noting wildfires in 2021 and 2023 are fresh in residents' minds.
He said the fire stemmed from a controlled burn at Alamos Gold Inc.'s new mining site.
On social media, the Town of Lynn Lake published a notice from the Toronto-based company May 7, stating 'above average' wind that day caused a fire from the previous week's brush burning to flare up within the MacLellan mine site.
Alamos Gold Inc. spokeswoman Rebecca Thompson said Thursday the wildfire service is leading the response.
The company is supporting the effort where needed, she said.
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Burned-out vehicles remain along Wendigo Road in the aftermath of the fire.
Dulewich commended the wildfire service and firefighters.
'They're doing all they can, but the resources for the province are stretched very thin because of all the fires in Manitoba,' he said.
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Firefighters from Alberta and B.C. responded to Manitoba's earlier calls for help.
RCMP, meanwhile, continued to investigate a fire that destroyed a Falcon Lake cabin that had been owned by fashion businessman Peter Nygard before he was convicted of sex offences.
Police have said it's 'quite possible' Tuesday's blaze, unrelated to wildfires, was intentionally set.
Falcon Lake residents said a neighbouring cabin was also destroyed.
chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca
Chris KitchingReporter
Chris Kitching is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He began his newspaper career in 2001, with stops in Winnipeg, Toronto and London, England, along the way. After returning to Winnipeg, he joined the Free Press in 2021, and now covers a little bit of everything for the newspaper. Read more about Chris.
Every piece of reporting Chris 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.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
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