Shannon Dueck

Lac du Bonnet RCMP say a pilot was not hurt after his float plane flipped over in the Winnipeg River.

On Monday at 2:31 pm, Lac du Bonnet RCMP received a report that a float plane was discovered upside down in the water after landing on the Winnipeg River.

Once on scene, officers were told that the pilot had safely landed the plane, but the right float went under water while taxiing to shore.

The pilot and sole occupant, a 27-year-old male from Snow Lake, was able to escape the plane just before it tipped upside down in the water. Police say he was not injured.

A spokesperson for the Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS) says fire activity is picking up again in our province, as a result of dry weather over the last couple of days.

Kristin Hayward is the Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for MWS. She says 118 active fires are burning in Manitoba. So far this year, there have been 313 fires, well ahead of the 20-year average of 229 by July 17th.

Wildfire smoke has posed a very high health risk to Southern Manitoba residents at various points this month.

That is according to the Air Quality Health Index or AQHI. According to the Manitoba Lung Association, the AQHI is based on the combined levels of three different air pollutants. Those three are ground-level ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and fine particulate matter. 

The Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS) says our province remains at a moderate to high fire danger level. Human activity, including arson, is contributing significantly to current wildfire conditions. As a result, critical firefighting resources are being diverted to respond to deliberately set fires, often in or near communities.

The Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS) says the province remains at a moderate to high wildfire danger level, with human activity, including arson, playing a major role in fuelling current fire conditions.

Officials say deliberately set fires are forcing crews to redirect resources that would otherwise be used to manage natural wildfire outbreaks, many of which are burning close to communities.

The Manitoba Wildfire Service (MWS) says our province remains at a moderate to high fire danger level. Human activity, including arson, is contributing significantly to current wildfire conditions. As a result, critical firefighting resources are being diverted to respond to deliberately set fires, often in or near communities.

Intense thunderstorms rolled through Southern Manitoba Thursday night. 

Rose Carlsen is a meteorologist with Environment Canada. She says our hot and humid day resulted in some unstable conditions in the environment. 

The mercury Thursday afternoon climbed above 30 degrees in many parts, but with the high humidity, the humidex was close to 40.

"Then we had a cold front sweeping through in the afternoon and evening, sparking off a bunch of thunderstorms as it moved through," says Carlsen.

Two pilots are dead following a tragic plane crash this morning south of Steinbach.

At 8:45 am, Steinbach RCMP were notified of the crash involving two planes. It was a mid-air collision in the Rural Municipality of Hanover.

RCMP, along with the Hanover Fire Department and emergency medical services, attended and located the wreckage of two small, single-engine aircraft.

The pilots were pronounced dead on scene. There were no passengers aboard.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada was notified. 

No further details are being released. 

Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) is reporting that more and more young people are ending up in emergency departments following a crash with an off-road vehicle (ORV).

Most of Manitoba remains at a low fire danger, with the exception of the northwest area, which is at a high fire danger.