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More people in northern Manitoba are leaving their homes as wildfires continue to threaten communities.

The roughly 600 residents of Cranberry Portage have been placed under a mandatory evacuation order because fires have knocked out power to the community -- a situation expected to last for days.

An evacuation of Pimicikamak Cree Nation, which started earlier this week, is ongoing and officials are expecting five flights to leave for Winnipeg by the end of today.

Smoke from multiple wildfires burning across Manitoba is triggering air quality warnings and special statements across much of the province.

As of Friday morning, 25 wildfires are actively burning in Manitoba, with 14 considered out of control.

The largest, fire EA061 in Nopiming Provincial Park, has grown to 124,238 hectares. A second major blaze near Flin Flon has reached 37,959 hectares.

There's no rain in the forecast for Flin Flon, Manitoba, over the next week as crews there fight a wildfire that's raging nearby.

Temperatures throughout the weekend are expected to range from the low to high 20s, before cooling off.

Thousands have evacuated the northwestern Manitoba city, including municipal government officials and health-care professionals.

Flin Flon mayor George Fontaine said on Friday that unless things changed, the fire was projected to take chunks out of the town.

If music be the food of love... we say turn up the volume! This Saturday, May 31 at 9 a.m., Classic 107 is dishing up a Shakespeare-inspired playlist to celebrate the return of Shakespeare in the Ruins (SIR), Manitoba’s acclaimed outdoor theatre company. Their 2025 season kicks off June 5 with Macbeth, followed by a production of Waiting for Godot (yes, that one), beginning June 13. 

Ottawa probably can't help overhaul how municipalities raise funds in the near future, because the federal government is now focused on major, nation-building projects, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday

"We're building on what has worked. We're learning lessons from what hasn't," Carney said at an event held by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

The group represents cities and towns that have lobbied Ottawa for years to give them more independent means of financing their operations.

The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations says she doesn't blame First Nations leaders who are voicing frustration with governments promising to fast-track development in their territories in the name of national unity.

"I don't blame them. They're frustrated and they're being disrespected," National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said Wednesday morning.

"If we're not at the table making these decisions right off the bat, this is what happens and it causes the Canadian government more problems later."

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says thousands more evacuees are expected and the city of Flin Flon is virtually deserted as wildfires continue to rage in his province.

Kinew told a Friday news conference that the mayor, councillors, health-care staff, and other officials have had to depart Flin Flon.

"The only folks remaining on the ground are firefighters and folks in the office of the fire commissioner and RCMP, who are there to battle the blaze," Kinew said.

"We do expect some very, very challenging conditions in Flin Flon and in the surrounding community."

Motorists will need to plan an alternate route instead of the Louise Bridge as the closure has been extended again, lasting much longer than anticipated. 

"The Louise Bridge closure has been extended to the end of July due to unanticipated repairs," The City of Winnipeg said on X. 

The bridge will be open to pedestrians & cyclists, with occasional closures possible.