Water bombers, helicopters, sprinklers all being used to fight pair of Manitoba wildfires

More than a dozen wildfires have sparked across the province in the past 24 hours.

Fire crews in the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet are working to bring a pair of wildfires under control Tuesday, one of which is around 300 hectares in size.

Loren Schinkel, the Reeve of the RM, said the fires are burning in the Red Deer Hills area and the Milner Ridge area, with Milner Ridge being the larger of the two.

Schinkel said crews have been battling the fires since Saturday.

“We’re hoping that Mother Nature will bless us with some moisture in the next couple of days here to assist in knocking them down,” Schinkel said in an interview with CTV News Tuesday.

Water bombers and helicopters have been brought in to fight the blazes, and the local fire department has helped set up sprinkler systems around some properties just in case the fire were to spread in their direction.

“There’s two properties that could be impacted, so they were outfitted with sprinkler systems. There’s been no evacuations yet, but at the end of the day, we’re just taking a precautionary measure.”

The RM is on heightened alert following the deadly wildfire that ripped through the area last year that killed two people and destroyed dozens of homes.

Schinkel said it’s believed the current fires were started by people and he is asking everyone to do their part so history doesn’t repeat itself.

“We got to think about what we’re doing here because, yes, last year’s fire—we just went through that anniversary and it’s something that we don’t want to occur again.”

There is rain in the forecast for the area over the next couple of days and Schinkel is hopeful that could significantly aid crews in bringing the fires under control.

“From my discussion with the fire chief this morning, yes, if we get the amount of rain that is predicted here, that will certainly assist.”

According to the latest data from the province, there are five wildfires that are deemed out of control and 27 fires total burning in Manitoba.