According to the latest wildfire update – Manitoba remains in a province-wide state of emergency and the extreme fire danger has expanded. Roughly 17,000 people have been evacuated from fire zones. Officials in Flin Flon say the fire burning near the city has been contained to outside its perimeter highway, while about 600 residents of Cranberry Portage were placed under a mandatory evacuation order. There are 25 active wildfires across the province with a total of 106 to date, well above the average of 84.
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As hotel spaces fill up with wildfire evacuees in Manitoba, a group from Pimicikamak Cree Nation found lodging at a hotel in Niagara Falls, Ontario. First Nations leaders says hotels are at capacity in Manitoba, and children have been sleeping on floors. They want politicians to issue a directive to hotel owners to give evacuees priority.
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In Brandon, the fire department says open fires are still banned. This includes burning leaves and brush, burning crop residue, and the use of fireworks. As of now, ‘fire department approved’ personal fire pits are still allowed.
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We’ve heard from the Weather Network, now the latest summer outlook from Environment Canada. Senior Climatologist David Phillips says June to August in Manitoba will be warmer than normal. He says the last time we had a cooler than normal summer was back in 2009. But there could be some relief coming for fire crews, Phillips says June is forecast to be wetter-than-normal.
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Manitoba Public Insurance has partnered with ‘Ride For Dad’ to create a specialty licence plate. It’ll raise money to support those affected by prostate cancer. The plate costs $70 with $30 going to the Manitoba Prostate Cancer Support Group. To date, the Specialty Plate Program has raised more than $5.5 million for provincial charities.
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There were more measles cases in Manitoba as the month of May came to a close. There were three cases in Winnipeg, four locations in Winkler, and in Portage la Prairie at the McDonald’s and in the hospital’s ER. Since February, 72 measles cases have been confirmed in the province.
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The Maple Leaf Foods Sports Complex, at First Street and Veterans Way in Brandon, did not open as planned this past weekend, and is reportedly a month delayed. The city says all fields are now set to open sometime in July,
with Cougars Field opening first. The whole project was expected to cost $16.6 million.
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Canada’s premiers are meeting in Saskatoon with Prime Minister Mark Carney in person for the first time since the federal election. They’re expected to talk about major infrastructure projects and breaking down interprovincial trade barriers to make it easier to purchase Canadian-made goods.
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A 27-year-old man from St. John‘s continues to create all Canadian word search books. Nick Cranford started in 2023 with a book about Newfoundland & Labrador and he’s been working his way across the country. His Manitoba puzzle book includes pages about the Forks, Churchill and The Guess Who. Cranford says he aims to complete a Quebec, BC, and a Canada-centric puzzle book by July 1st.
