The federal government is providing $19.2 million to help Manitoba battle wildfires this season as the province continues to fight a raging fire about 1.5 kilometres north of Cranberry Portage.
Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan announced the funding at the Manitoba Legislature on Thursday, while Jamie Moses, Manitoba’s minister of natural resources, announced the province would be matching that figure for a total of $38.4 million.
“The funding will go towards enhancing firefighting equipment, ensuring we have the right staff through active training, investing in prevention and mitigation capacity, as well as modernizing our information technology systems,” Moses said.
He added he is thinking about the hundreds of evacuees and the crews on the front lines “during this very difficult time for Cranberry Portage and surrounding residents.”
“This is an early kickoff to our 2024 wildfire season, earlier than anticipated,” he said.
While provinces and territories have the prime responsibility for fighting wildfires, “the federal government has recognized that additional firefighting resources will most certainly be required moving forward,” Sajjan said, blaming the changing environment for an increase in frequency and intensity of wildfires.
“Our first priority is to protect the lives and livelihoods of Canadians and increasingly, this starts with accepting the scientific reality of climate change and taking thoughtful and impactful action to address it,” he said.
“We live in a new reality today.”
WATCH | Emergency crews wade through forest fire near Cranberry Portage:
Hundreds of residents in a small Manitoba community were told to evacuate the area as a wildfire near Flin Flon continues to burn out of control.
It is estimated that by 2040, fire suppression costs could double in Canada as wildfires get worse, said Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal.
“And research suggests that every $1 invested in wildfire prevention and preparation can save up to $15 in costs,” he said.
Premier Wab Kinew was given an aerial tour of the Cranberry Portage fire zone on Tuesday and called it “a very dramatic, serious situation.”
His NDP government was criticized Monday for the $50 million it set aside for emergency management in this year’s provincial budget — half of what the Progressive Conservatives budgeted the year before — but Kinew said he will make sure “every resource goes out the door” to put out the fires and help evacuees.
Approximately 580 people have been evacuated due to the fire, but that number might increase as conditions change, the province said in its most recent update on Wednesday afternoon.
It remains about 31,600 hectares in size, or 316 square kilometres, and has not moved any closer to Cranberry Portage since Saturday, when a rapid advancement forced the sudden evacuation.
At this time, there is no estimated return date for evacuated residents, although Earl Simmons, director of the Manitoba Wildfire Service, told CBC Manitoba on Wednesday morning that “hopefully by the weekend we can perhaps get the folks back into Cranberry Portage.”
Another fire, about 2,785 hectares in size, is burning about 2½ km from the community of Wanless, north of The Pas.
Wanless and Cranberry Portage are only 40 kilometres apart, so the combined fires are creating a lot of smoke in the area, the province said.
“Area residents are advised to take precautions to protect against harmful smoke inhalation including limiting outdoor activity, staying indoors with windows and doors closed, setting air conditioning units in homes and vehicles to recirculate to avoid drawing smoke indoors, and drinking plenty of water,” the provincial fire bulletin states.