Evacuees who fled deadly Lac du Bonnet wildfire returning home, thankful for rain
Woman rescued by helicopter says she got out in nick of time
Some residents of the rural municipality of Lac du Bonnet who have been able to return home are thankful they're getting some rain, even as officials warn they'll need more than that for wildfire conditions in the province to really improve.
The evacuation order for permanent residents living in an area south of Wendigo Road in the eastern Manitoba municipality was lifted Wednesday evening, according to the RM of Lac du Bonnet website.
Re-entry was authorized for the Wendigo Road subdivisions and residences from Provincial Road 313 to Newcombe Road at 8 p.m. that night. The rural municipality said as many as 50 families could now be able to come back home.
Cathie Austen was staying at a friend's cottage when she heard residents in the area would be allowed back in. By 8 p.m., she was already lined up and ready to return home.
"We were like, 'Yay!'" she said. "[Doing] the old happy dance."
Environment Canada is reporting some areas of southern Manitoba received up to 70 millimetres of rain over the last 48 hours, though southeastern regions, including Lac du Bonnet, got less than 10 millimetres of rain as of Friday morning.
But more rain is on the way — along with a temperature drop — with the agency forecasting a period of rain mixed with snow after midnight Friday in the area, and risk of freezing rain overnight.
Jack Brisco, mayor of the RM of Alexander — which is dealing with the largest of the wildfires currently active in the province, in the Nopiming area — said conditions have improved because of the cooler and wet weather, though it also caused some problems Friday morning.
Reeve says they need more rain
The fire menacing the Lac du Bonnet area remained at around 4,000 hectares as of Friday afternoon's provincial fire bulletin. Travel is still restricted in several areas still under evacuation order.
"The rain is helping, but obviously [there's still] tinder-dry conditions, there's tree stumps and trees that are still on fire, burning on the inside," RM of Lac du Bonnet Reeve Loren Schinkel said, adding that it may take two or three days before any evacuation orders are changed, even with perfect weather.
"We are worried about lives and property," Schinkel said. "We know that the fire in that area flared up again last night and Wildfire Services says we're not letting anything go until we're sure it's all put out and secure for the residents to return."
He's urging residents to be patient while officials wait on conditions to improve before lifting further evacuation orders.
"You would think a little bit of moisture, you know, would help extinguish it — and it [does]. But we need this soaking rain for a few days to really get control of it," he said.
The wildfire in the rural municipality killed two people and has destroyed at least 28 buildings.
Ronald Runzer came back Friday to find his house was still standing, but his workshop and storage sheds "burned into the ground."
"I consider myself lucky," he said. "Two of my neighbours died, and a few of them lost everything."
Gay Kirby said two vehicles as well as some of her family's homes were destroyed, but it was a miracle her own home was spared. She said she also almost didn't make it out.
Helicopter escape
She and her husband were driving to safety from their home on the Lettonia peninsula when they came across a "wall of fire" that prevented them from getting out.
They instead drove back to their neighbours' home, who told them they didn't hear about the fire and hadn't left.
"Their home is on where there's a beach and we thought, well, if the fire does come here, we'd be safe on the beach," she said.
Kirby said she then phoned one of her sons, who contacted RCMP to give them their location. They were on the beach when they spotted a helicopter coming over toward them.
"We had no idea that it was there for us," she said. "So the helicopter finally did land and it's in the field. That fortunately was big enough for it to do that. We got in … [with our neighbours'] dog, the four of us and we left."
Kirby said if her son hadn't gotten in touch with the RCMP, they wouldn't have got out.
"The emergency measures people like, they're doing their best," she said. "The RCMP and provincial helicopters — I mean, the community… did the very best they could with such a terrible event, and are still doing it."
With files from Rosanna Hempel and Felisha Adam