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Some residents of Southern Manitoba have been noticing different trends this summer when it comes to insects. And the question has been asked whether our smoky conditions have played a role.

John Gavloski is an Entomologist with Manitoba Agriculture. He says studies have been done with biting flies and smoke. However, he cautions that the tricky part is that the impact of the smoke is very dependent on the intensity and the duration. 

"So, trying to make implications to what is happening in Southern Manitoba with the Northern Manitoba wildfires is very tricky," he says. 

The risk of wildfires remains high or very high across most of Manitoba.

Tuesday afternoon, the Manitoba Wildfire Service reported 165 active wildfires—up from 127 just a week ago on July 29.

So far this year, the province has seen 401 wildfires, which is 102 more than the average for this time of year.

Thousands of people have fled from a First Nation in northern Manitoba Monday as wildfires burned closer and closer to the community. 

The Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation, also called Nelson House, issued a full evacuation order Sunday in response to the blazes, as flames threatened to cut off road access and muddied air quality.

It was upgraded one day later to a mandatory evacuation. The community's roughly 4,000 residents were to register with the Cree Nation before busing to the Thompson Airport, about 75 kilometres away, to fly to Winnipeg.

It's been a long summer for local fire fighters who have been deployed in shifts to help fight wildfires across the province.
    
Members of the Pembina Triangle Mutual Aid District—including a St. Jean man—were first sent to Woodridge, in eastern Manitoba, at the start of the season before heading up north to Cross Lake, Thompson and most recently, Leaf Rapids. 

As folks in Portage and across the region gear up for the August long weekend, the forecast is calling for hot summer weather as we roll into the tail end of the season. But before you pack the cooler and hit the lake, there’s one more thing to consider: the smoke.

"It's going to be warm," says Crawford Luke, a meteorologist with Environment Canada. "We're not anticipating any heat warnings per se, but we should see temperatures in the mid to upper 20s."

Some residents of Southern Manitoba have been noticing different trends this summer when it comes to insects. And, the question has been asked whether our smoky conditions have played a role.

John Gavloski is an Entomologist with Manitoba Agriculture. He says studies have been done with biting flies and smoke. However, he cautions that the tricky part is the impact of the smoke is very dependent on the intensity and the duration. 

"So trying to make implications to what is happening in Southern Manitoba with the Northern Manitoba wildfires is very tricky," he says. 

As wildfires rage across the province, the environmental impact is being felt in every corner of the ecosystem, including one vital link in our food chain. 

Curtis Oude Voshaar, local beekeeper at OV Honey Farms, is witnessing firsthand how smoke is affecting his bees, their behaviour and honey production. 

Residents of two communities were preparing to head home Tuesday, while another community was being evacuated, as crews continued to battle wildfires across a large swath of the Prairies.

Some of the 2,400 residents of Tataskweyak Cree Nation in northern Manitoba started making their way back, two months after they were forced to leave by encroaching fire.

"It's very good news this week," Chief Doreen Spence said in a video posted to Facebook on Monday night.

The Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS) says high winds and dry conditions are creating a very high fire danger across much of our province today. 

A mandatory evacuation order is in effect for the community of Cormorant effective at 1 pm, Tuesday. This evacuation will affect approximately 300 residents.

For the safety of both evacuees and frontline and firefighting personnel, the province is reminding Manitobans not to enter areas under a mandatory evacuation until local authorities identify the situation is safe and evacuees are able to return.

Thick, smoky air has settled over large swaths of southern Manitoba on Monday afternoon, prompting Environment Canada and Manitoba Health to issue an air quality warning for several rural municipalities.

Residents from Portage la Prairie to Neepawa are being urged to take precautions as wildfire smoke continues to sweep across the province, reducing visibility and posing health risks to vulnerable individuals. Officials say it is already impacting air quality and could reach the U.S. border before the day’s end.