Town of Lynn Lake being evacuated due to northern Manitoba wildfire

Residents of a northern Manitoba community have been ordered to leave town because of the "imminent threat" posed by a nearby wildfire.

The Town of Lynn Lake said in a Facebook post Tuesday morning residents and visitors must evacuate the community effective immediately due to a rapidly advancing wildfire.

The blaze, about five kilometres north of the community, is about 7,000 hectares in size and was out of control as of Tuesday, the province said in its latest fire bulletin, issued Tuesday afternoon.

The town said in an update Monday that Manitoba Wildfire Service crews were pulled back from the fire line due to extreme conditions, including wind gusts of up to 55 km/h.

Audie Dulewich, who is with the crews preparing for the wildfire, said he's been working to build fire breaks in Lynn Lake over the last few days.

"We kind of got a fire that's wrapped around the community pretty good and burning for several weeks already. But the winds were kind of southeast winds, driving it away from the community. And tomorrow, those winds are due to change," Dulewich said Tuesday morning.

"There's been plumes of smoke all around us for quite a while. Now, the sky is just filled with smoke, so you can't really see the big plumes anymore."

Brandon Dulewich, Lynn Lake's mayor and Audie's son, said the wind was expected to push the fire toward Provincial Road 391.

"Once that fire crosses the highway, it will no longer be an option to evacuate via the highway, so we want as many people out as we can now," he said.

Lynn Lake, which is just over 800 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, has a population of around 600, according to the 2021 census.

The mayor said nearby Marcel Colomb First Nation, which he said has close to 300 residents, is organizing its own evacuation with help from the Canadian Red Cross.

WATCH | Hundreds flee wildfires in northern Manitoba:

Wildfires force evacuation of northern Manitoba communities

2 days ago

Duration 1:47

Crews in Manitoba continue to deal with out-of-control wildfires, two of which have forced evacuations in Lynn Lake and Sherridon.

The evacuation notice said bus transportation is available for those without personal transportation, from West Lynn Heights School. A reception centre has been set up at the Thompson Regional Community Centre in Thompson, about 230 kilometres away.

Residents are being told to take go bags, along with identification, medications, necessary supplies and provisions for their pets.

Anthony McInnis, Thompson's city manager, said the city expects between 500 and 600 evacuees to stay in Thompson, but is ready to receive up to 883 people from Lynn Lake and Marcel Colomb.

Officials are also working with Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation to set up a shelter to possibly take in 200 evacuees, he said.

"We were pre-planning because of the fires down in Cross Lake Saturday or Sunday," McInnis said. "We were expecting them to evacuate here. Those conditions changed and then we found out about Lynn Lake, so our focus shifted at that time."

Brandon Dulewich said he expects 90 per cent of Lynn Lake's residents to be evacuated by Tuesday evening.

Firefighter injured

The Manitoba Wildfire Service is currently responding to 18 active fires in the province, according to the latest fire bulletin.

One firefighter was severely injured while performing their duties on Sunday and has been hospitalized, the bulletin said. It did not say which fire the person was fighting.

About 190 kilometres south of Lynn Lake, an out-of-control wildfire prompted an evacuation order in the community of Sherridon Monday.

Sheryl Matheson, president of the Northern Association of Community Councils and deputy mayor of Sherridon, said winds are set to push smoke toward the community Wednesday.

"We have no air support or ground support at this time. My understanding is just that it's just not available for us," she said. "All we're doing right now is value protection in our community."

The wildfire near Sherridon has now grown to about 40,000 hectares, according to Tuesday's fire bulletin, a significant jump from about 8,000 hectares as of Monday, according to the province's fire map.

Matheson said about a dozen residents have stayed back to help protect Sherridon from the flames.

"We are a very small northern community," with a population of just over 80, she said.

Last year, a fire forced a shelter in place order, "where we couldn't get out of the community," she said.

"This year, we're surrounded by it and we're going to lose road access at some point over the next 24 hours. It's devastating."

Debi Hatch, who, along with her husband, brother and sister-in-law, is a member of the volunteer fire department in Sherridon, said resources are stretched thin.

"We're just preparing for the worst, right?" she said. "The sprinkler systems, the fire truck is active. Wildfire services are doing what they can, I'm sure, with the stretched resources they have. And we're seeing more and more of these big, huge fires."