Hot and dry. That has been the description of our summer this year in Northern Manitoba. ??
Wet. That has been the description of the weather this summer in southern Manitoba. That contrast could not have been more obvious with the recent announcements that while we are providing flood relief in the south we have been stepping up our forest firefighting efforts in Northern Manitoba. ???
?On the forest fire front we were hit with lightning strikes, which resulted in 19 new fires in the region in just one 24-hour period earlier this week. All of these fires were caused by lightning. There were 17 new fires in the northeast region and two in the northwest region. A fire just west of Lynn Lake, which is about 300 hectares in size, is now being held. ???
?To assist our firefighting efforts, 21 firefighters and two water bombers from Ontario arrived earlier this week and are being deployed in the Thompson area. In total, 12 water bombers, 25 helicopters, 193 firefighters and other equipment are being mobilized to meet the current fire situation.
????How many fires are active? Earlier this week there were 89 active fires in the province. The number of fires this year is already higher than normal. To date, there have been a total of 497 forest fires, compared to the typical 380. Most of the fires have been caused by lightning. In the south we have announced that we are providing disaster financial relief to numerous individuals, farms, businesses and municipalities that have been hard hit by flooding. In many cases rainfall was at levels that were unheard of in recent years. The fact that we have flooding and forest fires at the same time is one of the reasons we need to be prepared for virtually any situation in this province. ?
As minister responsible for emergency measures I would like to thank Ontario and the other jurisdictions that have provided us additional resources to deal with the forest fire threat. I would like to pay tribute to the countless Manitobans who have been part of our response to these challenges. I would like to pay particular tribute to the many dedicated forest firefighters and the many others who have been working so hard to protect our communities. In Manitoba we will continue to work hard to be prepared for any and all emergencies. ??
