Forest fire near Manitoba-Ontario border forces evacuations

Water bombers from Manitoba and Ontario are fighting a forest fire near the provincial border. The fire is across the border from West Hawk and Caddy Lake. Photo by Troy Morrison & Jenna Zimmerman.

A forest fire in the Whiteshell area has grown in size.

Officials with the Wildfire Program of Manitoba Sustainable Development said the fire is now 700 hectares in size.

That’s 500 hectares larger than it was on Thursday.

The cottage community of Ingolf is under a mandatory evacuation order. Officials said the evacuation is a precautionary move.

About 100 people have been forced from their homes.

The only road into the community has been blocked off by yellow police tape. Authorities are not allowing anyone to return to their homes and it’s not known how long the evacuation will last.

Bob and Donna Hazlehurst were asked to leave at around 8 p.m. Thursday. There’s no road access to their cottage - the only way in is by boat.

While evidence of the forest fire was not apparent from Ingolf on Friday, Hazlehurst said the threat is still very real.

“We just grabbed a bag and threw it in the boat and headed out,” said Bob Hazlehurst. “With the wind picking up again today, pretty worried if it catches on our side of the lake. It’s all trees, it’s going to go up quick.”

So far, there’s no reports any homes have been damaged, and it’s not clear exactly how many homes are threatened by the fire.