South Whiteshell Provincial Park cottagers flee as fire spreads from Ontario border

Tessa Adamski · CBC News

· Posted: May 14, 2025 12:04 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 minutes ago

Cottagers successful parts of Whiteshell Provincial Park were scrambling to battalion their belongings Tuesday aft an out-of-control wildfire on the Ontario borderline prompted the state to contented an evacuation announcement for the confederate area. 

The occurrence started burning Monday day connected the southbound broadside of Longpine Lake astatine Ingolf, Ont., and has since dispersed crossed the border. Water bombers from Ontario's occurrence work person been collecting h2o from West Hawk Lake and dropping it onto the flames.

Samuel Klass said Manitoba's evacuation announcement ordering confederate Whiteshell cottagers to evacuate earlier 5 p.m. Tuesday happened quicker than helium expected. He drove to his cottage located connected the northbound broadside of West Hawk Lake, which has been successful the household since 1954, and grabbed household photos, heirlooms, sportfishing cogwheel and different meaningful items.

"I showed up reasoning that I was going to beryllium getting up of an evacuation order, but it came alternatively quickly," adding that helium lone had an hr to drawback things and go.

"I would similar not to presume that the worst is going to hap but it's beauteous threatening."

The evacuation announcement includes the northbound broadside of West Hawk Lake, Caddy Lake and Florence and Nora Lake. A fig of camping sites and trails successful Whiteshell Provincial Park are closed, including the Mantario Trail, Hunt Lake, Lost Lake, Whiteshell River, Big Whiteshell hiking and upland motorcycle trails.

Klass said the upwind had been blowing heavy from the southbound which seemed to marque the fume little visible, but erstwhile it fto up, determination was a ample plume of achromatic fume coming implicit Misty Bay connected Tuesday.

For now, helium is crossing his fingers that the wildfire won't scope his cabin.

The size of the occurrence is an estimated 8,000 hectares, according to occurrence accusation serviceman Chris Marchand with the Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services successful Ontario. 

"It continues to beryllium a hot, adust and windy, which is simply a existent look for utmost occurrence behaviour, particularly astatine a clip erstwhile we haven't seen immoderate meaningful precipitation for astir apt a week and a half," helium said.

Marchand said it is chartless what started the fire, but an probe is successful place. There is not a occurrence prohibition successful the area, helium said.

Arlene Hryckiw and her mother, who's a year-round nonmigratory surviving connected the northbound broadside of West Hawk Lake, left the country connected Monday evening. 

"Before the [Ontario Provincial Police] came to archer america of the mandatory evacuation, we had already started loading worldly into the boat."

When Hryckiw and her parent near connected the boat, which they usage to entree their compartment remotely, the said the archetypal thought moving done her caput was, "I should person grabbed much stuff."

"Fingers crossed that our spot doesn't spell … we conscionable person to wait," she said. 

Hryckiw described the skyline connected Monday evening arsenic a "solid partition of reddish flames" that was precise scary. She could spot the occurrence being dispersed by the upwind and could perceive large 'banging' sounds of what she believed was propane tanks exploding.

"I consciousness truthful atrocious for everybody that's mislaid everything. [For] a batch of people, that's their home," she said successful narration to cottagers successful Ontario.

She said sprinklers whitethorn beryllium enactment astir cottages closest to the occurrence to debar going up successful flames.

South Whiteshell cottagers nether the evacuation bid are being told to cheque successful astatine a reception centre that's been acceptable up astatine the West Hawk Lake occurrence hall. North Whiteshell cottagers are to cheque successful astatine the Rennie District Office.