Voluntary evacuations underway due to fire north of Winnipeg

Crews north of Winnipeg were kept busy with a grass fire near Libau. Joseph Bernacki has more.

Manitoba firefighters are battling a wildfire in the RM of St. Clements that has prompted at least one community to start evacuating residents.

The municipality posted on Facebook Monday morning the fire is burning near Road 91 North and Road 32 East, about 66 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

James Clark VI lives just outside Libau and said he heard a loud bang during an evening thunderstorm Sunday evening around 9:30 p.m. He and his neighbours down the road watched the fire spark up from a distance—from a suspected lightning strike.

“We started hearing a lot of sirens,” he said. “The sky was just orange. Very orange. You could see the flames further off, but not as close as they are now.”

Clark has spent the day driving around the area on his ATV warning residents of the ongoing blaze.

“I’m just worried about my wife and baby,” Clark said. “It has been scary having to check on this every hour.”

Brokenhead Ojibwe First Nation posted on its website that voluntary evacuations have started for people living in parts of their community.

“Lynx Lane and west on Anishinaabe Way at the cross roads are evacuating as a precaution for our most vulnerable,” the community said.

They’re asking for people with mobility issues to grab valuables and head to the Private Tom Chief Memorial Hall for more information.

“Anyone that can go help their relatives, please do so and make your way to the hall,” the community said.

Winston Desjarlais, a councillor for Brokenhead Ojibway First Nation, said the preliminary notice of evacuation for some areas is based on the extreme dry conditions they are seeing in the area.

“It’s very, very dry, and it’s a lot of fuel for fire,” Desjarlais said. “Luckily the wind’s cooperating with us right now, and it’s pushing more towards the lake, which effectively is better for us.”

He said if the winds change, members should be ready to move quickly.

Images from the area show Manitoba RCMP blocking roads with thick smoke billowing in the distance.

Libau and Patricia Beach residents are asked to stay away from the area while crews work, the RM said.

A fire ban is in effect in the RM, the province said, as a lack of significant precipitation and warm temperatures fuels a high risk of wildfire.

Desjarlais said leadership from the Brokenhead Ojibway First Nation is continuing to provide hourly updates to their social media as the situation progresses.

There is no official statement on the size of the fire or the cause.