‘It got bigger and bigger’: Wildfire ignites near Oak Hammock Marsh

Jacques Bourgeois from Oak Hammock Marsh, provides an update on a fire that occurred just northwest of the Centre over the weekend.

Southern Manitoba is currently experiencing a stretch of hot and dry weather, which contributed to a wildfire near Oak Hammock Marsh over the weekend.

On Sunday night, a blaze broke out a couple hundred metres northwest of the marsh.

Jacques Bourgeois, who works at Oak Hammock Marsh, said around 8:15 p.m. one of their employees saw heavy flames coming from near the centre. The employee drove up and found a large wildfire raging close to Oak Hammock Marsh’s building.

“It got bigger and bigger, so they called the fire crews and they came and they stayed until around midnight last night to make sure it stayed contained and didn’t come close to the building,” he said, adding that the fire was likely caused by a lightning strike.

Bourgeois noted the wind helped push the fire away from Oak Hammock Marsh, adding that there’s still a bit of smouldering on Monday morning.

He said it was a scary night as they are only weeks away from the grand reopening of their Wetland Discovery Centre.

“Hopefully we have a few days of rain coming up in the forecast, so that might help with our situation,” he said.

“But right now [the marsh] is still a bit of a tinderbox, so we’re trying to make sure that people don’t use any kind of spark that can light a fire.”

Bourgeois said he’s not concerned about the fire spreading again, adding that Oak Hammock Marsh is open to visitors on Monday.

Wildfires in Winnipeg

On Monday morning, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service (WFPS) responded to three grass fires in the city, including in Whittier Park, the 2900 block of McPhillips Street, and the 1100 block of Logan Avenue.

All three fires were quickly contained and extinguished.

The City of Winnipeg reminds residents that a fire ban has been issued for the next two weeks, which prohibits open fires, backyard fire pits, fireworks, fire pits in city parks, and the use of solid fuel-burning appliances.

Those who violate the ban face a fine of $500.

• With files from CTV’s Rachel Lagacé