Manitoba has lifted its provincewide state of emergency.
Premier Wab Kinew announced that as of Monday at noon, the state of emergency under the Emergency Measures Act has been rescinded as many Manitobans have started to make their way home. Kinew says though we are still in a very serious situation, battling the wildfires is something that can be done through "normal government powers." He adds it is important to have a light touch when it comes to something as serious as declaring a state of emergency.
"I want to be grateful and thankful and express our gratitude for everybody who stepped up, the people on the front lines of the fight against the wildfires who continue to do amazing work, to the folks at the local level who helped make sure that thousands of Manitobans made their way to safety, to the people in other parts of the province who have rolled out the welcome mat and helped to feed and shelter tens of thousands of people," says Kinew. "This has been a moment where we've really seen the best of our province shining through."
The state of emergency was first declared on May 28.
Kinew says it is the combination of Manitobans working together, and recent beneficial weather, that has enabled the state of emergency to be lifted.
Kinew adds emergency orders involving congregate shelters, security measures, and supports for pets are no longer needed and can be delivered using the normal channels of government.
"As we move forward in our great Manitoba summer, we want everyone to be safe, we want everyone to be free to enjoy the rest of your summers and we're going to keep working together with our partners in Indigenous communities, municipalities, other levels of government to ensure that our over-arching duty to keep you safe is going to be respected."
Kristin Hayward is Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for the Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS). She says there are 23 fires burning in our province as of Sunday, with seven of those burning out of control. Hayward says there have been 129 fires this year in our province, burning more than 909,000 hectares.
Hayward says conservation officers have laid 93 charges related to the wildfires and have issued 31 warnings. She notes the majority of these fall under the Wildfires Act and parks activities regulations, such as entering a wildfire area that is closed or not following burning restrictions.
According to Hayward, there are 375 personnel from outside of Manitoba that are currently helping battle our fires. This includes more than 200 from the United States federal agencies, 100 from Quebec and France, as well as support from Newfoundland and Parks Canada.
Christine Stevens is Assistant Deputy Minister for the Manitoba Emergency Management Organization. She says there are 17 states of local emergencies in Manitoba at this time. Stevens says though 12 communities remain evacuated, 9,000 Manitobans have been allowed to return home. That means 13,000 Manitobans are still displaced, though residents of Flin Flon will likely begin returning home on Wednesday.
Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor says evacuees are still occupying 93 hotels in 19 different communities.
Meanwhile, Kinew says a few weeks back he raised the issue of Disaster Financial Assistance (DFA) with the Prime Minister.
"(I) let him know that we'd be coming forward with our numbers in that process," says Kinew. "And I look forward to working together with the feds to help Manitobans rebuild."