Latest news with #WhiteshellProvincialPark
CTV News
29-05-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
More highways reopen in Whiteshell Provincial Park following wildfire closures
A sign for Whiteshell Provincial Park is pictured on May 20, 2025. (CTV News Winnipeg) Additional highways in Whiteshell Provincial Park have reopened as crews continue to battle a massive wildfire in the area. The province announced on Thursday morning that three more highways have reopened to traffic. The highways reopening include Highway 44 from Highway 307 to Highway 1 at West Hawk; Highway 301 from Highway 1 at Falcon Lake to Highway 44 at West Hawk, and Highway 307 from Highway 11 at Seven Sisters to Highway 44. The highways were closed to allow crews to battle a large fire in the area. While the three new highways have opened, Highway 309 from Highway 307 to Big Whiteshell Lake and Highway 312 from Highway 44 to Ingolf both remain closed to traffic because of the wildfires. A fire near Falcon Lake has been burning since May 15 and is listed as out of control. It is currently 3,771 hectares in size.
CBC
25-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Pointe du Bois reopens after 'more progress' controlling wildfires around Whiteshell
A section in the northwest corner of Whiteshell Provincial Park has reopened to the public after the province says there has been "more progress" in battling out-of-control wildfires. Permanent residents, cottagers, commercial operators and visitors are allowed back into Pointe du Bois as of Sunday morning, the province said in its latest fire bulletin. The area, roughly 120 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, had been under a mandatory evacuation order for almost two weeks after extreme fire conditions from out-of-control wildfires encroaching on the park forced its closure to the public. The province reopened the first pockets of the Whiteshell on Thursday, including Sylvia Lake, Eleanor Lake, Dorothy Lake, Otter Falls, Barrier Bay, Nutimik Lake and Betula Lake on the west side of the park. Those returning to the park "must be prepared to evacuate with little notice," the bulletin said. Manitoba Parks says "more progress has been made" to control the blazes, but the wildfires are still large, complex and expected to remain active. Weather forecasts are also not favourable with warm, dry conditions and no rain in the week ahead, the province said. "Many Manitobans are eager to return to the parks that remain closed, but public safety remains the top priority," the bulletin said. As of Friday, the largest fire encroaching on the park stretches over 101,000 hectares north of the Whiteshell in Nopiming Provincial Park. A wildfire is also burning at the Manitoba-Ontario border, near Ingolf, reaching a total 32,000 hectares in size, with about 1,650 hectares on the Manitoba side as of Friday. "Restrictions and closures remain in place for everyone's safety and allows fire crews and emergency responders space to do their work," the province said. The majority of the Whiteshell remains under a mandatory evacuation order. The campgrounds in the provincial park remain closed to limit overnight guests, hiking trails are closed and backcountry travel is prohibited. The province is asking for patience and cooperation as the situation continues to unfold.
CTV News
25-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
More of Whiteshell Provincial Park being reopened
A 'Park Closed' sign for Whiteshell Provincial Park on May 15, 2025. (Danton Unger/CTV News)
CBC
20-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Events cancelled last-minute in Whiteshell
People with special events planned in the Whiteshell Provincial Park are facing some last-minute wrinkles, as the wildfire along the Ontario-Manitoba border remains out of control.
CBC
17-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Manitoba battling 16 wildfires by Friday, largest blazes clustered in the southeast
The number of active wildfires in Manitoba was slightly reduced by Friday, but with more than a dozen still burning the province has heightened restrictions for open blazes and travel out east. There have been 81 wildfires in Manitoba so far this year — 16 of them are still active, according to a fire bulletin issued by the province on Friday. The number is down from 21 wildfires the province said were active by Thursday. The largest active wildfire in the province, near Nopiming Provincial Park, stretches nearly 100,000 hectares, according to the province. That fire has forced the evacuation of Bernic Lake Mine, 180 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg and close to the Ontario border. The closest wildfire to Lac du Bonnet, where at least 800 people were evacuated from their homes earlier this week, was six kilometres away from the rural municipality by Friday. That blaze has burned approximately 4,000 hectares to date. The wildfire in Ingolf, Ont., has spread over 4,000 hectares into Manitoba's east, where the province has declared a local state of emergency, a mandatory evacuation, and the temporary closure of Whiteshell Provincial Park. In the rural municipality of Piney, near the U.S. border, crews, including helicopters, are battling a wildfire that has spread over 7,000 hectares near the town of Carrick. A wildfire is also burning two kilometres away from the Rural Municipality of Libau, about 50 kilometres north of Winnipeg. According to the fire bulletin, the fire was approximately 5,000 hectares in size by Friday. A wildfire is still burning close to The Pas in Manitoba's northwest, spreading over 40,100 hectares by Friday. Travel and fire restrictions The Manitoba Wildfire Service is heightening the level of travel and fire restrictions in the province's southeast corner. From the U.S. border to Highway 304, east of Lake Winnipeg, backcountry travel, including with ATV, motorized vehicles and off-road vehicles is no longer allowed, unless with a permit issued by a local conservation officer for industrial operations. There is no access for outfitters, except for staff necessary to protect property under a travel permit. A full fire ban remains in effect and all existing burning permits have now been cancelled in this area, according to the province.
