Forest fires: more than 3700 evacuations in Manitoba

Doreen Harper | Facebook

QMI agency

Wednesday, 30 August, 2017 22:17

UPDATE
Wednesday, 30 August, 2017 23:21

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WINNIPEG – Approximately 3700 people have been evacuated in recent days in three indigenous communities threatened by the fires in northern Manitoba.

At a press conference Wednesday, the minister of sustainable Development, Rochelle Squires, explained that people were first evacuated by boat, and then they will be relocated to larger centres, including Brandon and Winnipeg, by plane.

“Our government is doing everything it can to fight these fires and helping the evacuees. I am of any heart with those affected by the fires and who had to abandon their homes and possessions. I can only imagine how that can be scary,” said the minister Squires.

The flames threatened especially the 2000 members of the Wasagamack First Nation. “The sky was darkened by smoke and ash, which fell on us,” said a drained, Norah Whiteway, Global News.

Powered by winds, the blaze threatening Wasagamack has proved difficult to combat, Tuesday, because of smoke, which hindered the work of the tanker aircraft. Firefighters working to install sprinkler systems, Wednesday, to try to protect homes threatened, ” said Ms Squires.

The evacuees have been placed under the responsibility of the Red Cross, which has served to provide them with the necessary. “More than 525 evacuated from Wasagamack and Garden Hill arrived in Winnipeg,” said the agency in the evening on his Twitter account.

The canadian armed Forces will deploy air assets to assist in the evacuation of disaster victims. The department of aboriginal and Northern Affairs, for its part, has announced that it is working to transform the Winnipeg convention Centre in a temporary shelter that can accommodate up to 1200 people, reported CTV News.