Latest news with #CreeNation
CTV News
7 hours ago
- General
- CTV News
‘They're at ease': More Pimicikamak Cree Nation evacuees set to arrive in Niagara Falls
Sheena Garrick, evacuation coordinator for Pimicikamak Cree Nation shares how they're protecting community members from wildfire threats through shelter.
CBC
10 hours ago
- Climate
- CBC
Pimicikamak chief frustrated with residents refusing to flee wildfire, says arrests should be made
Pimicikamak Cree Nation leaders are still working to get the final few community members to safety as emergency crews fight an out-of-control wildfire, and Chief David Monias is exasperated with residents who've refused to leave. "We had to really get people out now, because it's really hard to focus on the strategies for fighting this fire when you have to worry about lives, that the people that are still here," he said Tuesday morning. "They want to bunker down and think that they can survive it, but if those fire embers come in … they don't understand the dynamics of what the fire does and how it behaves. They feel like they're saving their homes." There are two fires, one on either side of the community, about 520 kilometres north of Winnipeg. The fire about 13½ kilometres southwest of Pimicikamak is approximately 3,300 hectares and out of control. Despite the distance, embers the size of Monias' hand have been blowing in from that blaze, and they're still warm when they land, he said. "Which means that all the fire embers are flying and [potentially] starting new fires. That's what we're scared of." The other fire, about five kilometres west, is 2,287 hectares in size and also listed as out of control. Monias learned around 5 p.m. Monday that the fire had jumped the lake to the mainland. "We saw the fire and it was just rolling over on top of the trees. It's going to roll over towards the other escape route, which would cut us off altogether, even to Norway House," he said. "The other one [is] moving to the north and if it keeps going the same way, it'll come at us … surrounding us." There are about 50 residents who need to leave, and all have been located, Monias said. Some can be reasoned with, but there are others who have said they are absolutely not going — even though they have young children, he said. "They said, 'You're not going to come and get me,' but we are," Monias said. "We'll be rounding those people up with RCMP and security and safety officers, going around to make sure they get on a plane [on Tuesday]." A mandatory evacuation order was issued May 28 for the community. Some residents were flown out, but high winds and smoke grounded flights and closed the airport. The remaining 6,500 residents were told to head to Norway House, even though that community was only expecting 1,000 evacuees. Hundreds of vehicles and buses took people to the ferry for the crossing to that community, but the bottleneck created waits of up to nine hours, prompting some to return to Pimicikamak. On May 30, there were still 1,000 people holding out in Pimicikamak. Since then, military flights from Norway House have taken evacuees out of Norway House, while some flights have managed to land in Pimicikamak, as well. Monias is staying back until the last evacuees are gone, leaving about 60 essential workers and the firefighters in the community. Monias and the essential workers will then make their way out, hopefully by Wednesday, he said. Some essential workers were sent on a bus Monday night to Norway House to be picked up by a Hercules military plane. One of the Hercules had tried to land twice in Pimicikamak on Monday but was repelled by thick smoke. Pimicikamak Coun. Shirley Robinson has been meeting with evacuees when they arrive in Winnipeg. "That really hurt, seeing your people come off the Hercules with their children, holding their children's hands and their little infant babies. It hurt me. It broke me. I'll say that. It really broke me," she said. Monias is calling for the RCMP and government to better support communities where residents refuse evacuation orders — even if it means making arrests. "We need to have enforcement … that people can be forced to leave for their own safety and also for our safety, because if we have to try and rescue somebody and move people, it endangers our lives, as well," he said. "It would have been good to have more RCMP deployed over here so they can do more enforcement and … to say, 'OK, yeah, you can arrest these people if they don't want to move for their own safety." In those circumstances, it would also be helpful to have military go door-to-door to make sure people were packing and leaving, he said.
CTV News
11 hours ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Pimicikamak Cree Nation's wildfire response
Winnipeg Watch Sheena Garrick, evacuation coordinator for Pimicikamak Cree Nation shares how they're protecting community members from wildfire threats through shelter.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Health
- CTV News
Wildfire smoke exposure may shorten lung cancer survival
Manitoba RCMP officers assisted with the evacuation of several northern communities in Manitoba including the City of Flin Flon, Pimicikamak Cree Nation, and Mathias Colomb Cree Nation on May 28 and 29, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Manitoba RCMP Exposure to wildfire smoke may increase lung cancer patients' risk of dying from their disease, particularly among non-smokers, but the effect may be mitigated by certain cancer treatments, according to a large California study presented at a major medical meeting on Saturday. Researchers tracked more than 18,000 people with non-small cell lung cancer – the most common kind – between 2017 and 2020. Those living in neighborhoods with the highest levels of wildfire-caused air pollution in the year after their cancer diagnosis were more likely to die from the disease, they found. Patients who inhaled higher levels of tiny particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less that can penetrate deeply into the lungs had a 20% greater risk of dying from lung cancer, researchers reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago. People with advanced stage 4 cancer who had never smoked were especially affected, researchers found. Their risk of dying from cancer was 55% higher if they were exposed to high levels of wildfire air pollution. The study used advanced modeling to estimate daily air quality at patients' home addresses, based on data from satellites, weather models, smoke forecasts and air quality monitors. The researchers also found that wildfire smoke exposure did not significantly affect survival of patients with Stage 4 lung cancer with a history of smoking who were treated with an immunotherapy drug. 'This surprising trend suggests that smoke-related changes in the body may interact with certain treatments,' and more study of this phenomenon is warranted, the researchers said. Wildfire smoke is more toxic than normal air pollution. Along with particles of soil and biological materials, it often contains traces of chemicals, metals, plastics and other synthetic materials. 'As wildfires become more frequent and intense in California and other parts of the U.S., we need targeted health strategies to protect cancer patients and others with serious health problems,' said study leader Dr. Surbhi Singhal of UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center in Sacramento, California. Reporting by Nancy Lapid; Editing by Bill Berkrot
CBC
4 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
Pimicikamak Cree Nation struggles with evacuations as people return out of frustration
One day after Pimicikamak Cree Nation Chief David Monias said 767 people in the northern Manitoba community needed to evacuate, there are now close to 1,000 waiting to leave. That's part of the frustration Monias says he's facing with exits being blocked by wildfires, airlifts unavailable and long waits for ferries. "Some have somehow made it back," he said of evacuees who left on Wednesday and headed south toward Norway House Cree Nation, after Monias ordered a mandatory evacuation. Hundreds of vehicles and buses took people to the ferry for the crossing to that community, but the bottleneck meant some waited up to nine hours without food or water, Monias said. It appears many got fed up with waiting and returned to Pimicikamak. Some residents were flown out earlier this week from the airport in Pimicikamak, about 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg on the shores of Cross Lake, but high winds and dry conditions worsened the situation this week. Flights were grounded. The remaining 6,500 residents were told to head to Norway House, even though that community was only expecting 1,000 evacuees. Since Thursday, the Canadian Armed Forces has been flying four Hercules aircraft into Norway House to pick up Pimicikamak evacuees and get them to Brandon or Winnipeg. The plane then heads back to Norway House for another load. Monias said each round trip takes about three hours, so it's a slow process. Just over 3,000 Pimicikamak residents were still on the list to be evacuated from Norway House as of Friday morning. The thick smoke in Pimicikamak cleared out by late afternoon Thursday, as the wind changed direction and the sky cleared, Monias said. "We were so happy. [It was] easier to breathe, easier on the throat." But the airport has remained quiet. Monias was making calls Friday to see if any privately run airlines could help out, but he wasn't sure how long that window of clear skies would remain open. "[The fire] is continuing to move towards our direction despite the wind blowing against it. The wind is slowing it down," he said. "But the wind changes frequently, and then it'll be coming towards our way again probably at the end of the day or evening. So that means more smoke and more fire coming again. It's very concerning." He was also on the phone with federal government officials, requesting water bombers to clear some of the flames from the highways. "It would give us the chance to see if we can get people out that way," he said. By Friday afternoon, an RCMP official told CBC News the highway has been temporarily reopened and evacuations were taking place that way. The spokesperson did not know how many were able to leave. More evacuations ordered Meanwhile, mandatory evacuations were also ordered Friday for Schist Lake and Big Island Lake, while the campground at nearby Bakers Narrows Provincial Park was evacuated and shut down Thursday night. All three locations are just southeast of Flin Flon, a city of 5,000 near the Saskatchewan border in northwestern Manitoba that faces a dire situation due to an approaching wildfire. Cranberry Portage, about 35 kilometres southeast of Flin Flon, is also under a voluntary evacuation because it's running out of gas and supplies. The community is along Highway 10, which has been closed due to fires. The closest gas supply is in Grand Rapids, roughly a 350-kilometre drive away. On the east side of the province, the community of Bissett has also been ordered to evacuate due to the out-of-control Nopiming/Bird River fire, which is about 125,000 hectares in size, according to the province. Everyone was told to be out Friday morning. As of Thursday, the most recent update from the province, there were 22 active wildfires in Manitoba. There have been a total of 103 already this season, far above the province's 20-year annual average of 80 at this time of year. More than 17,000 people are being evacuated from northern, western and eastern regions of Manitoba, and a provincewide state of emergency has been declared. The communities being cleared out include Lynn Lake, Pukatawagan Cree Nation (also known as Mathias Colomb First Nation), Marcel Colomb First Nation and Sherridon. Norway House and Chemawawin Cree Nation (Easterville) are under evacuation notices, with people ordered to be ready to leave. The Manitoba FireView map includes locations, sizes and other information about the wildfires.
