Latest news with #MKO
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Eight-hundred more fire evacuees expected to find refuge in Niagara Falls
Hundreds more wildfire evacuees were expected to fly to Ontario Tuesday, where a third-party organization has arranged for them to stay in hotel rooms. Xpera, a security and evacuation support service firm, had organized flights for 793 evacuees who are already staying in Niagara Falls, said Robert Garland, Xpera vice-president of emergency security management for Eastern Canada. As many as 800 additional evacuees could make the journey on Tuesday, Garland said. RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS Darell Moore was evacuated from Norway House Saturday night. There was no hotel room for him when he arrived in Winnipeg. 'That all depends on whether, in Winnipeg, they can get the planes full or not. It's a situation of getting families to a marquee point and then on to planes,' he said. Niagara has become a destination for some of the 17,000 people, many of whom are from remote and northern communities, who have been displaced by wildfires. Hotels in southern Manitoba quickly filled up, and the Canadian Red Cross established emergency shelters in arenas and other large spaces. 'People with nowhere to stay outside of a congregate setting are definitely getting on planes and coming here to Niagara, and that frees up some of the beds in Winnipeg for some of the most vulnerable,' Garland said. The evacuees headed for Ontario are associated with Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, a northern Indigenous political entity that represents 26 First Nations, including five under mandatory evacuation orders: Pimicikamak (Cross Lake), Norway House Cree Nation, Mathias Colomb Cree Nation (Pukatawagan), Marcel Colomb First Nation (Black Sturgeon Falls) and Tataskweyak Cree Nation (Split Lake). York Factory First Nation (York Landing), another MKO community, evacuated vulnerable residents Monday, but is not subject to a mandatory order. Eight Niagara hotels have so far opened their doors to evacuees. Xpera is prepared to find accommodations for up to 3,000 people, but that number could change depending on the rapidly evolving situation, Garland said. After the Manitoba government reached out to Ontario for support, Xpera was tapped to arrange accommodations because it has a contract with Emergency Management Ontario, he said. Garland could not provide a price tag, but said it will be paid by the federal government through Indigenous Services Canada. Xpera is arranging recreation activities and security for evacuees. It is co-ordinating with health authorities from Ontario and Manitoba to provide health care, Garland said. 'So far, everything is running really smoothly.' Niagara, Ont., Mayor Jim Diodati said his city has opened its arms to Manitobans. 'Some of them, I'm sure, are nervous or stressed because they are getting uprooted from their homes and they're being taken thousands of miles away, but I'm hoping that the silver lining in the grey cloud is… they are going to get to take in one of the great natural attractions of the world,' he said. The city attracts as many as 14 million visitors each year who want to see the Niagara Falls. It has an inventory of more than 14,000 hotel rooms, which makes it a 'logical place for any situation where you need a lot of spots for people quickly.' RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS Robert Burroughs of Flin Flon fled the northern city May 28 with only bare essentials. 'We are happy to do our part, especially initially,' he said. The tourism season kicks into high gear in Niagara around July 1. Diodati said he hopes the federal government can find alternative places to house evacuees before then because hotels will likely reach capacity. If the crisis extends into the summer, Diodati suggested post-secondary institutions throughout the country could be considered for temporary accommodation. Back in Manitoba, some evacuees were settling into hotels after spending time in emergency shelters. Talking about home brought Robert Burroughs to tears outside the Victoria Inn on Wellington Avenue. The Flin Flon resident was moved to the hotel after spending one night at the Century Arena in Fort Garry. 'I'm a very emotional guy,' he said softly. 'It's been very difficult.' Burroughs, an employee of the Victoria Inn in Flin Flon, fled the northern city May 28 with only bare essentials. He was part of a massive convoy that drove south as flames crept dangerously close to the city of about 5,100 people. He considers himself lucky because his general manager arranged rooms for him and roughly 30 other Victoria Inn employees from Flin Flon, who are staying at the chain's hotel in Winnipeg. 'Red Cross has been so busy we don't have any meal tickets,' he said. 'We are having to support ourselves. They say to keep our receipts. At first, they accepted our Red Cross cards, but now they need the meal tickets for the hotel to get paid by Red Cross.' Darell Moore was aboard one of the last planes out of Norway House on Monday night. No hotel room was waiting for him when he touched down in Winnipeg. 'I slept in my truck,' he said, describing a long night spent beside his seven-year-old dog, Buzy. Over the weekend, Moore's daughter, Darrylee McKay, loaded six children into her father's pickup and made the eight-hour drive south to Winnipeg. Among them were her three children, and kids who belong to her sister and niece. A second car that travelled with them carried four more children. 'We had to keep stopping, all the kids had to keep using the washroom,' McKay said. 'It was a hard drive.' RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS A Cross Lake family first sought refuge in Norway House and then drove eight hours to Winnipeg to escape the fires. The children are very upset about their little dog Buzy not being able to stay with them in the hotel room. Buzy is being fostered. From left: Okay McKay, 10, Belinda McKay, 7, their grandmother Bernice Moore Suzie McKay, Darrylee McKay holding Jenson McKay, Demi Moore, holding Davair Ross-Moore, age 1. The family, from Cross Lake, had sought safety in Norway House after an evacuation order was issued. Once in Winnipeg, they spent their first night at a soccer complex on Leila Avenue that has been converted into a temporary shelter to house hundreds of evacuees. 'It was crazy,' she said. 'We had to stay next to a lot of people and sleep in cots. No sleep at all.' Still, she said, it was better than Norway House. 'I had to sleep in the truck with all of my babies,' she said. On Tuesday, Moore was trying to get a room at the same hotel where the rest of his family was staying. He said after he registered with the Red Cross Monday night, he was told it could take up to two days before he'd be placed in a hotel. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. The Red Cross has refused to do an interview regarding the evacuation process and putting up people in hotels. The provincial government said evacuees who require enhanced accessibility or have medical needs are the first to get a room. It confirmed some rooms have been booked outside of the centralized process. Hundreds more hotel rooms are expected to become available in Manitoba over the coming days, the province said. — With files from Scott Billeck Tyler SearleReporter Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press's city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic's creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler. Every piece of reporting Tyler 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. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
‘Our people are tired': First Nations leaders call on province to ‘open up hotels' and suspend conferences to prioritize evacuees
A wildfire near Sherridon, Man. is seen on May 28, 2025. (Michelle Reimer) First Nations leaders in Manitoba gathered Saturday afternoon to call on the province to provide a directive to hotels prioritizing wildfire evacuees in Winnipeg hotels. Leadership from Assembly of First Nations (AFN), Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC), Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) and some of the affected First Nations urged the premier to suspend conferences that are taking up space much needed for evacuees arriving to the city. 'It is really sad to see our children have to sleep on floors, waiting in hallways, waiting outside,' said AMC Grand Chief Kyra Wilson. 'We need to make sure we have space for our people.' MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee said the reception of people into Winnipeg is 'not a good experience.' 'If you were to see what is happening you would be appalled as Manitobans.' he said, 'This is a matter of basic human dignity when our people arrive here they are not afforded that basic human dignity.' Kelly Linklater, a councillor with Mathias Columb First Nation said the nation is 'halfway' evacuated with community members being flown out all day and continuing over the next couple of days. 'It would be good to move quicker,' he said, 'There is anxiety because of the kids, the Elders, and of course, the pending changing of the wind.' Leaders spoke of how families are spread out across the province and even out of the province. Linklater said there is a possibility 800 of their members may be flown to Niagara Falls, ON. 'We need to come together and make space for our people.' said Grand Chief Wilson, 'Our people are tired. Our leadership is tired.' CTV News reached out to the provincial government for comment.
Irish Examiner
6 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Energy independence: A prize worth fighting for
Extensive mapping has found that Ireland can generate at least a further 6,000 MW of wind energy, in addition to what is already built or in the planning system. Onshore wind energy is already our most affordable source of new electricity. It is clean, it is secure, it creates jobs at home and it supports communities in rural Ireland. Irish wind farms provide more than a third of the country's electricity and have saved consumers nearly €840 million since 2000, around €320 per person since the start of the decade. Without them we would spend more than €1 billion a year on gas, almost all of it imported, for electricity generation. While momentum continues to build behind offshore wind energy it is our onshore wind farms on which we must rely in our efforts to meet our 2030 targets and which will continue to provide the bulk of our renewable power until well into the next decade. Build faster We need to build more, faster, and more affordably or face billions in fines identified by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council and the Climate Change Advisory Council. A new report from Galway-based planning consultancy MKO, Protecting Consumers: Our onshore wind energy opportunity, contains a detailed analysis of the potential for more onshore wind energy in Ireland, and shows us that we can do just that. We have just over 5,000 MW of wind energy connected to the electricity grid. Another four thousand have secured, or applied for, planning permission which could get us close to our existing 9,000 MW target. MKO's detailed and painstaking analysis maps every single household and business in Ireland, identifies every environmentally protected area, every river, lake and stream, develops a coherent national approach on landscape and identifies the total space left in Ireland for onshore wind energy development. Out of this area — roughly 1,302 square kilometres or less than 2 per cent of the country – the authors estimate, conservatively, that at least another 6,000 MW of onshore wind energy could be produced beyond the current 9,000 MW target. 'Ireland has significant additional potential to harness our indigenous onshore wind energy resource,' said Brian Keville, Managing Director of MKO Ireland and lead author of the report. 'This analysis clearly demonstrates that a significant amount of onshore wind energy can be delivered in just two per cent of the country's land mass, while taking account of planning and environmental constraints and design requirements.' Challenges There are still challenges. Some of the most suitable locations identified are in areas with a weak electricity grid network. That is why investing in upgrading our grid is so important, to get affordable, clean, energy from where it is produced to where it is needed. Other locations might be difficult to develop at the right cost. That is why the renewable energy industry, has been calling — for five years — for a cross-departmental and independently chaired task-force to identify how we can lower prices. They may be big challenges, but the prize is big too — energy independence. 'There is no doubt that Ireland is a wind energy success story, particularly in onshore wind,' the Taoiseach recently told the Dáil. 'but because of a lot of controversy around locations in certain aspects that narrative does not often get told. 'We get a greater share of our electricity, 35% on average, from onshore wind farms than anywhere else in Europe. We are world leaders in integrating renewables onto our grid, which can now take up to 75% of total electricity demand from wind farms. 'Last January, a significant milestone was achieved when the State reached more than 5 GW of installed wind capacity. That is half-way to the State's 2030 onshore climate action target.' Stand up for consumers It is time now to stand up for Irish electricity consumers and onshore wind energy is Ireland's most affordable source of new electricity. The more wind energy that we can develop, the less we rely on imported fossils fuels, and the better protected Irish families and businesses are from a volatile fossil fuel market. Every month we see wind energy reducing electricity costs. Tripling our onshore wind capacity, which is possible by delivering our existing pipeline and developing the land identified by MKO, would drive these costs down even further. We simply cannot build a strong, resilient, low-carbon economy if we are relying on imported expensive fossil fuels. Our future must be our own, one built on a foundation provided by the clean, affordable and secure energy that only the renewable energy industry can provide. Ireland's onshore wind farms, supported by new offshore wind projects, solar, storage and a new generation of advanced interconnectors, will secure the future of a prosperous, competitive, country in which our families and our businesses can thrive. That's a prize worth fighting for.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Thousands evacuated as wildfires burn in northern Manitoba
May 29 (UPI) -- Thousands of First Nations people in northern Manitoba are being evacuated as the central Canadian province issued a state of emergency to battle fast-moving wildfires, officials said. There are a number of wildfires burning across thousands of acres in northern Manitoba, mostly near the border with Saskatchewan. Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents 26 First Nations communities in the province, said in a statement that evacuation orders have been issued for nearly 17,500 people in four First Nations communities with two more communities on evacuation notice. "A lot of our First Nations are under threat because of the fires that have consumed a lot of territory in our area, and I'm just asking all of you, my relatives, to be strong and to be brave and to be courageous during this very difficult time," MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee said in a recorded statement published to Facebook. "This is a very, very critical time in our First Nations." Premier Wab Kinew of Manitoba on Wednesday declared a provincewide state of emergency, which will be in effect for 30 days to ensure federal, provincial and local resources can be deployed in a coordinated response. A statement from the provincial government states that evacuation orders have beeb issued for the city of Flin Flon and the First Nations of Pimicikamak and Mathias Colomb. "This is the largest evacuation in many Manitobans' living memory," Kinew said during a press conference. "This is a moment of fear and uncertainty. This is a moment of concern. But I want to tell you that your fellow Manitobans will welcome you. We will get through this difficult period, and we will get through this trying period the way we always do -- by working together. " He said he has spoken with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who agreed to his request for assistance from the Canadian Armed Forces. The military, he said, will be aiding with evacuation flights to the province' capital of Winnipeg.
UPI
6 days ago
- Politics
- UPI
Thousands evacuated as wildfires burn in northern Manitoba
May 29 (UPI) -- Thousands of First Nations people in northern Manitoba are being evacuated as the central Canadian province issued a state of emergency to battle fast-moving wildfires, officials said. There are a number of wildfires burning across thousands of acres in northern Manitoba, mostly near the border with Saskatchewan. Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents 26 First Nations communities in the province, said in a statement that evacuation orders have been issued for nearly 17,500 people in four First Nations communities with two more communities on evacuation notice. "A lot of our First Nations are under threat because of the fires that have consumed a lot of territory in our area, and I'm just asking all of you, my relatives, to be strong and to be brave and to be courageous during this very difficult time," MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee said in a recorded statement published to Facebook. "This is a very, very critical time in our First Nations." Premier Wab Kinew of Manitoba on Wednesday declared a provincewide state of emergency, which will be in effect for 30 days to ensure federal, provincial and local resources can be deployed in a coordinated response. Manitoba has declared a province-wide state of emergency to safely evacuate and shelter 17,000 people - the largest wildfire evacuation in recent memory. To those leaving home: you're not alone. These measures protect you. We'll get through this - together. Wab Kinew (@WabKinew) May 29, 2025 A statement from the provincial government states that evacuation orders have beeb issued for the city of Flin Flon and the First Nations of Pimicikamak and Mathias Colomb. "This is the largest evacuation in many Manitobans' living memory," Kinew said during a press conference. "This is a moment of fear and uncertainty. This is a moment of concern. But I want to tell you that your fellow Manitobans will welcome you. We will get through this difficult period, and we will get through this trying period the way we always do -- by working together. " He said he has spoken with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who agreed to his request for assistance from the Canadian Armed Forces. The military, he said, will be aiding with evacuation flights to the province' capital of Winnipeg.
