Manitoba spending $80M on 3 new water bombers to fight forest fires
As another wildfire season approaches in Manitoba, the provincial government says it will spend $80 million to upgrade its water bomber fleet with three new firefighting aircraft by 2032.
The new DHC-515 Firefighter water bombers will have upgraded navigation systems, increased tank capacity and more fuel-efficient engines, the province said in a Friday news release.
The first water bomber is expected to join the fleet for the 2031 fire season, with the other two expected to be added in 2032, the release said.
The new bombers were promised within a decade in the latest provincial budget, released last month.
Premier Wab Kinew and Natural Resources Minister Ian Bushie held a news conference to highlight the new firefighting aircraft on Friday.
Bushie said the additional aircraft are integral to protecting communities and forests from the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires.
Earl Simmons, the executive director of Manitoba Conservation and Wildlife Service, called the purchase of the water bombers a "monumental commitment."
Friday's news release also highlighted other 2025 budget commitments for firefighting, including an additional $6.7 million toward new equipment and systems, and $1.1 million over four years for a new weather information system, wildfire mapping and reporting systems, the release said.
The province also noted the latest budget doubled tax credits for volunteer firefighters and volunteer search and rescue members from $3,000 to $6,000.
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CBC
2 days ago
- CBC
'Outright hostility' between Wab Kinew, Obby Khan unbecoming of their offices: experts
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The NDP threatened during the last week of the session to extend the sitting into the summer if the PCs wouldn't fast-track the government's interprovincial trade bill, while the Progressive Conservatives kept MLAs awake through the night on Monday, the last sitting day, when they demanded recorded votes on bills the NDP's majority government would certainly pass. Christopher Adams, an adjunct professor of political studies at the University of Manitoba, said there appears to be "deep-seated antagonism" between the party leaders. "When we see this banter and hostility — it's actual outright hostility — it's tough on Manitobans to see that," he said. WATCH | Kinew and Khan trade barbs in charged committee meeting: While aggressive, rigorous questioning of government and heckling are routine parts of question period in the legislature, the exchange between Kinew and Khan came at a May 21 estimates meeting, where more substantive exchanges around policy are expected and media attention is minimal. And unlike question period, the Speaker of the House, whose duties include keeping the peace in the chamber, doesn't preside over meetings in the committee rooms. That meant the heckling and personal attacks at the estimates meeting persisted, with only the occasional interruption by the chairperson. While these meetings can be charged — former premier Brian Pallister called Kinew an "asshole" during a 2021 committee meeting, before apologizing that same meeting — the behaviour in this case lasted for several minutes at a time. 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Later in the May 21 committee meeting, as Kinew kept trying to talk over Khan, the Opposition leader responded by saying he hoped Manitobans watching on YouTube could hear how the premier is "nothing but a bully." "Like when you cried in the scrum," Kinew blurted, likely a reference to 2023, when a tearful Khan described a tense handshake with Kinew. "The premier is trying to, I don't know, emotionally attack me for saying that I've cried in the House," Khan said. "So what? There's nothing wrong with a man having emotions." The verbal clashes continued. Khan dismissed the premier as a "pit bull attack dog" and a "toxic, bullying leader" — demonstrated, he said, by Kinew's previous run-ins with the law. The now 43-year-old has openly admitted to a conviction for impaired driving and for assaulting a cab driver in his early 20s — offences for which he has received pardons. 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Though it was captured on security video, that hasn't put to rest what happened. Khan, who was then a cabinet minister, alleges Kinew — the opposition leader at the time — swore and shoved him. Kinew denied that, calling it a "tense verbal exchange." WATCH | Security camera footage of 2023 exchange between Kinew and Khan: Video of Wab Kinew-Obby Khan confrontation released 2 years ago Duration 0:38 This past April, when Khan became leader of the Progressive Conservatives, Kinew didn't phone to congratulate him. Asked by reporters why he didn't try to speak with Khan, Kinew responded that "no one ever reached out and congratulated me," when he became NDP leader. That excuse, Thomas said, amounts to a "schoolyard approach," with both men figuratively arguing over who hit the other first. "It just shows the lapse in respect and civility across the aisle," Thomas said. 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Asked about his conduct at the recent estimates meeting, Khan said he could "always try to act better," but argued the premier started it. "Manitobans need to see this side of the premier," Khan said. "They need to be concerned with the language he uses." Khan, however, denied having any ill will toward Kinew. CBC News tried for a week and a half to interview Kinew about this story, but his office declined. This week, CBC News asked his spokesperson, Ryan Stelter, when Kinew would have time for an interview, but was told he wouldn't be made available. Stelter said the premier was in Ottawa to meet with federal ministers when the request was made, and shortly after, a provincewide state of emergency was declared because of wildfires. Kinew has had a few media availabilities, Stelter said. However, they were focused on the emergency.
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Winnipeg Free Press
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