Manitoba premier says more financial support available for wildfire evacuees

The Canadian Press
·1 min read

The Manitoba government says emergency financial support will be available for residents of Cranberry Portage and surrounding communities who have been forced from their homes by a nearby wildfire.

The assistance is available to those under mandatory evacuation due to wildfires for seven days or more.

Eligible adults will receive $200 and eligible children will receive $100.

Premier Wab Kinew says the one-time payment will "help make sure families don't have to worry about getting groceries or paying the bills at this challenging time."

The support is in addition to that offered by Emergency Social Services when evacuations extend beyond three days, including covering direct costs for accommodations and helping with meal and transportation costs.

The province says the supplement will be issued to individuals and families who registered with an ESS reception centre and who meet the eligibility criteria.

About 675 people from in and around Cranberry Portage who were forced out last weekend were cleared to return home on Sunday.

Officials said the fire near Flin Flon was about 370 square kilometres in size on Friday, but the fireline closest to Cranberry Portage was under control.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 19, 2024.

The Canadian Press

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • Jasper National Park engulfed in flames: Shocking before and after photos show famous Maligne Lodge burning as Alberta wildfire spreads

    Canadians are sharing before and after images of Maligne Lodge at Jasper National Park in Alberta after wildfires engulfed the region.

  • Terrifying NASA Video Shows America Spewing CO2 Into Atmosphere

    Trapped Gases NASA has released a new visualization that shows copious amounts of carbon dioxide swirling around the Earth's atmosphere. The video shows how concentrations of the gas move across the planet, driven by wind and atmospheric circulation, from January through March 2020. The level of detail is truly astonishing, allowing us to "zoom in […]

  • How roads are reshaping and scarring our planet, and even changing animals’ DNA

    ‘Road ecology’ is the focus of Crossings, a powerful new book by environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb.

  • Man punches grizzly in face during bear attack in northern B.C.

    A B.C. cyclist is recovering after a run-in with a grizzly and two cubs that ended with the bear getting punched in the face. According to conservation officer Matthew Corbett, a man was riding his bike along a forested trail next to Anderson Flats Provincial Park in northwest B.C. when he surprised a female grizzly and her two cubs in a clearing. "The bear just immediately charged him, knocked him down," Corbett said. But the man put his bike between himself and the bear, which prevented him fr

  • 'Monster' fires may have destroyed half of historic Canadian town

    The blazes are still out of control as firefighters try to save as many buildings as possible.

  • How decline of Indian vultures led to 500,000 human deaths

    A new study links the vulture decline in India to deadly bacteria spread, causing about 500,000 deaths.

  • Wood pellets boom in the U.S. raises health and environmental concerns

    Wood pellet production skyrocketed across the U.S. South to feed the European Union’s recent push for renewable energy but residents near manufacturing plants -- often those in poor, rural swaths -- believe the process is making people sick. (AP video by Stephen Smith)

  • Ancient three-eyed reptiles get new home at Chester Zoo

    Tuataras are one of the world’s oldest surviving species and lived on Earth before the dinosaurs.

  • MS Coast watches the tropics as Saharan dust clears, door opens for hurricane activity

    The Saharan dust that tamped down tropical disturbances is settling. What could happen in August?

  • Typhoon set to bring a warm start to August for parts of Canada

    We could see above-seasonal temperatures to start August thanks to a typhoon in the western Pacific

  • Scientists found a groundbreaking new reason to plant more trees

    Microbes living in tree bark are absorbing methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere on a massive scale, a study found.

  • Tornado strikes a major Canadian metro area on Wednesday

    Several confirmed tornadoes hit Ontario and Quebec during severe thunderstorms on Wednesday

  • Wood pellets production boomed to feed EU demand. It's come at a cost for Black people in the South

    GLOSTER, Miss. (AP) — This southern Mississippi town's expansive wood pellet plant was so close to Shelia Mae Dobbins' home that she sometimes heard company loudspeakers. She says industrial residues coated her truck and she no longer enjoys spending time in the air outdoors.

  • California's largest wildfire explodes in size as fires rage across US West

    California's largest active fire exploded in size on Friday evening, growing rapidly amid bone-dry fuel and threatening thousands of homes as firefighters scrambled to meet the danger.

  • Jasper wildfire: Rain, cooler weather limiting spread of flames in national park

    The recent rainfall and cooler weather in Jasper National Park have helped to limit the spread of wildfires, providing a boost to firefighting efforts. The park authorities are optimistic that the fire behaviour will calm over the next 72 hours due to the rainfall. While more rain is expected Friday, temperatures are supposed to return to the mid 20s by Saturday, which the park says will lead to an increase in fire activity. Jasmine King reports.

  • Alberta premier holds back tears as wildfire rages

    STORY: DANIELLE SMITH: “To those in Alberta and around the world who have experienced the magic of Jasper... The magic is not lost and it never will be.” Alberta premier Danielle Smith choked back tears at a news conference Thursday as she described the impact of a raging wildfire that has devastated the western Canadian tourist town of Jasper."We're seeing potentially 30 to 50% structural damage… We don't know particularly which structures have been damaged and which ones have been destroyed. But that's going to be a significant rebuild and significant displacement for a long period of time."Jasper is in the middle of mountainous Jasper National Park, in the province of Alberta. The town and the park, which draw more than 2 million tourists a year, were evacuated on Monday, when officials estimated there were up to 10,000 people in the town and an additional 15,000 visitors in the park.One major concern for responders is if the fire damages the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, which carries hundreds of thousands of barrels per day of oil from Edmonton to Vancouver.Alberta Wildfire Information Unit Manager Christie Tucker: "There are 176 wildfires burning in the forest protection area of Alberta, 54 of those are out of control, 50 are being held and 69 are under control...”According to Parks Canada, the Jasper fire was caused by a lightning strike on Monday afternoon and fueled by strong winds.Environment Canada is forecasting rain for Thursday, which might help firefighters.The Jasper fire could be one of the most damaging in Alberta since a 2016 blaze that hit the oil town of Fort McMurray, forcing the evacuation of all 90,000 residents and destroying 10% of all structures in the city.

  • Tornado watch issued for northwest Ontario on Friday evening

    A tornado watch is in effect for northwestern Ontario on Friday evening

  • How blue-green algae blooms are threatening the Great Lakes

    Freshwater blue-green algae blooms are a global phenomenon that can affect humans, pets, the environment and the economy. And as weather patterns shift, the blooms — which prefer warm, nutrient-rich water — are appearing in areas where they wouldn't commonly occur, according to one researcher.Though blooms typically show up in shallow bodies of water with temperatures above 20 C in areas of higher agricultural activity, blooms in colder and more nutrient-poor lakes have been observed more freque

  • ‘Lucky one to get close’: Marion police officer describes encounter with black bear

    “Once it saw me, it knew it wasn’t going to go in my direction,” officer says.

  • Hurricane season has been on pause. Here’s when that could change

    The Atlantic Ocean has been on a nearly three-week long rest after producing historic Hurricane Beryl, but the basin is about to wake up.