Hundreds of Manitoba wildfire evacuees heading home on weekend

Two weeks after being forced from their communities by wildfire threats, hundreds of Manitobans will soon be going home.

"We are allowing folks to re-enter Cranberry Portage starting at 8 a.m. [Saturday] morning, so that's very exciting news for all the folks there that have been evacuated," said Lori Forbes, emergency co-ordinator for the rural municipality of Kelsey in northwestern Manitoba.

"I'm just so happy that they can go home. They want to stop eating out. They want to quit paying for hotel rooms. People want to get back to work, just get back to their everyday routine."

Close to 440 people were ordered out of the community, about 35 kilometres southeast of Flin Flon, on May 31.

Power was lost as fires consumed hydro poles in the region and roads were at risk of being closed, which would limit fuel and food supplies or even trap residents. The decision was made the clear out the community.

The majority of evacuees fled to Winnipeg, while some went to The Pas, which is much closer.

Forbes said provincial fire officials have told her they have a good handle on the fires and feel Cranberry Portage is no longer at any risk.

"Power has since been restored and is very stable, [and] all those burned power poles in the fires that kind of surrounded Cranberry Portage have been repaired," she said. "Manitoba Hydro just jumps so fast to these emergencies. They do an amazing job."

She's encouraging people to stop in The Pas to get groceries on their way back. The closest centre for big grocery runs is Flin Flon, but that city is still under evacuation, "so that's clearly not going to be [an option]," Forbes said.

The town of Snow Lake and community of Sherridon are also set to welcome people back on Saturday at 8 a.m.

"We're very pleased to say that we dodged a very big bullet here. Everyone's homes are still here, their businesses are still here," Snow Lake Mayor Ron Scott said Friday.

That evacuation order was first put in place three days after the community, about 590 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, declared a local state of emergency as strong winds fuelled the massive Flin Flon blaze and pushed it toward the town, clogging the air with smoke.

The town has about 1,100 permanent residents, and there is also a camp that houses 400-450 employees of the Hudbay Minerals mine.

"We had a large crew of volunteers that stayed behind and did an enormous amount of work to get the town prepared for whatever nature might throw at us," Scott said Friday.

"Now that the fires have laid down low, we're not 100 per cent out of the woods, but it's been judged that things are safe now."

Due to all of that work — clearing brush and trees, improving the firefighting equipment (sprinklers, pumps, hoses) and bringing in materials to better protect structures — "the town and the main employers are actually in much better shape now going forward to deal with whatever happens for the rest of the summer," Scott said.

"It's going to feel good to get everybody back and get back to normal operations."

The notice about the return was posted on Snow Lake's Facebook page Friday morning after a council meeting, Scott said.

Returnees are being asked to stock up on groceries and other essential supplies before going back. Everyone must maintain a prepared go-bag in the event things take a turn and the town needs to be evacuated again.

On Friday, Paige Loggie was packing up her bags to return to Snow Lake with her husband after staying in Dauphin for days.

When a voluntary evacuation order came in for Snow Lake residents early last week, Loggie and her husband decided to stay in town to help out others who were leaving. 

"I was concerned about all the families, the logistics surrounding their safety," she said. 

"It was very traumatic to see. It was like everything outside was sepia tone, if not a dark orange and red, and it was terrifying." 

Loggie left Saturday and she is excited to go back to work at the town's mine.  

"We just really want to support our community ... start the rebuilding process in our [and] other local communities like Flin Flon," Loggie said. 

Sherridon rescinds evacuation order 

Sheryl Matheson, the deputy mayor of Sherridon, posted on that community's Facebook page that the evacuation order is being lifted and re-entry being allowed.

"Critical infrastructure has not been impacted but it is recommended to run all house taps for five minutes to flush the water lines. Ensure you run both cold and hot taps," the notice says.

People may also encounter debris in their yards, spoiled food in their fridges and freezers and possible water in their homes as collateral damage from the fire fight, the post says.

At a news conference on Friday, Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief Garrison Settee said the province has been working with the Red Cross to create a task force to help displaced residents' eventual return to First Nations. 

Settee said buses will probably be used to repatriate most of the evacuees when they are allowed go back. The province is still working out a plan for those who live in isolated communities inaccessible by road, he said.

Nearly 21,000 people in total have been registered with the Canadian Red Cross as Manitoba wildfire evacuees.

As of Thursday, there were 21 active wildfires in Manitoba, including seven classified as out of control, the province said in information released Friday.

There has been a total of 117 wildfires in Manitoba to date.

Of those 117, 103 were caused by people, nine were sparked by natural causes and five are under investigation, the province's fire situation report says.

The fires have consumed 901,164 hectares as of Thursday.