Finding oneself at the front lines of fighting wildfires is something not everyone can imagine.
For Patrick Thiessen, deputy fire chief in Darlingford, a willingness to help where it’s needed most led him to this exact position.
Thiessen has travelled kilometres across the province to help in various ways in various locations.
From fighting wildfires to helping evacuees escape uncertainty, he has seen the situation from an altogether unique perspective.
From one location to another
The deputy firefighter says he got his start with this type of work in 2023 during wildfires at Leaf Rapids, where he helped set up sprinklers to allow the wildfire service to attack the fire in the bush.
In 2025, at the height of a particularly devastating year for fires in Manitoba, the deputy fire chief has been busy.
“Early May, the first deployment was to The Pas, so we were up there for a few days and helped them out and ... from there, I was home for 17 hours and then was up to Lac Du Bonnet for a few more days.”
After Lac Du Bonnet, Thiessen travelled to Pukatawagan, then returned to Lac Du Bonnet, and subsequently went to Cross Lake to assist with wildfires.
Help in vital moments
Throughout his deployments across the province, Thiessen’s role has primarily been sprinkling cabins, cottages, and subdivisions.
In Pukatawagan, helping with evacuations was also part of his work.
“That was a really unique experience and really good,” he says. “The community had everything very much in hand. We were just there to help facilitate some communications between the air force and the evacuation centre.”
“It was good to see so many people from the communities actively involved in the response to whatever it was they were doing. Whether they were helping put sprinklers out, whether they were evacuating people — whatever it was, everybody was very involved.”
-Patrick Thiessen, deputy fire chief, on fighting wildfires in Manitoba.
Thiessen says that his role in the evacuation process was to help at the helicopter landing zone. He says that by the time evacuees reached the helicopters, some were “nervous.”
“It was a completely different experience, but for the most part, everybody was calm, and we just helped them carry their stuff or anything that we needed to do to help get the helicopters full,” he says.
Another part of his role, which might not be immediately apparent, was to offer reassurance in a frightening situation.
“We try to go in and provide ... that sense of calm. The sense [that] we’re here to help .... We're just extra bodies and we can help things move a little bit smoother or relax people,” he says.
‘It was good to see so many people ... actively involved’
For Thiessen, one thing that stood out during his work around the province is how well-organized the efforts have been.
He says everyone is “doing all the right things.”
“It was good to see so many people from the communities actively involved in the response to whatever it was they were doing. Whether they were helping put sprinklers out, whether they were evacuating people — whatever it was, everybody was very involved,” he says.
The communities also showed their appreciation to the visiting firefighters, according to Thiessen. He says he felt “very welcomed.”
Firefighters from all over
Thiessen is one of many firefighters who have travelled to help with fighting wildfires in Manitoba. He says it was an “interesting” experience to meet people from departments of all sizes united for one cause.
For the deputy fire chief, there was kinship in the situation.
“You find that [people] are the same. They're just like you. They have the same kind of drive and the same desire to help, and so you can connect over that,” he says. “You develop friendships with these people when you're up there for six or seven days at a time with them.”
Some firefighters even came to help from south of the border.
“In Cross Lake, we got to work with an American incident management team that came up from all over the US,” he says. “It was really good to work with other people and see different ways of doing things and learning from them.”
The presence of firefighters from outside the region provided much-needed support for local departments.
“That's one of the big things — giving them that breathing room. Sometimes it takes a few days for things to start rolling, and when you get there, you can give them that little break to catch their breath, and then they come back, and they're ready to go," says Thiessen.
Lessons from a singular experience
When the deputy fire chief reflects on his trips to help fight wildfires, there are a few things that strike him.
One thing is the support of the people who keep things running at home while firefighters travel to other parts of the province.
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- Evacuation centre at Meridian Exhibition Centre no longer needed, Winkler thanked for emergency readiness
“There are so many people who go up that have kids. They’re farmers. They have responsibilities,” says Thiessen. “Someone needs to keep that rolling while they're gone, and without that support, it can't happen.”
Another thing that has made an impression on him is the selflessness and devotion of the large group of people — some of whom take vacation time to help — that is willing to help in emergencies.
“Everybody is pulling their weight and contributing what they can,” he says.
- With files from Robyn Wiebe -
