Peguis First Nation set to lift state of emergency following devastating fire

A devastating fire has destroyed several homes in Peguis First Nation. The fire also forced a state of emergency in the community, however, officials confirmed that the evacuees could be heading home as soon as Tuesday.

The fire broke out Sunday in the southern part of Peguis, about 190 kilometres north of Winnipeg. It’s part of a growing wildfire situation across the province, with Manitoba now at 17 active fires with 54 in total.

“My house is up here, and you can see how close the flames were, the flames rolling,” said Doug Thomas, the communications director for Peguis First Nation.

“From my vantage, it looked like my house was burning because the smoke was thick, so I thought for sure these houses were burning.”

Thomas had to evacuate his family and almost lost his home due to the fire, showing firsthand the devastating power of Mother Nature. He says the wall of rolling flames would have engulfed his property if it wasn’t for the fast response time.

“Water bombers were coming over and splashing all this area, so I think that helped slow it down, so the flames weren’t so high, so they prevented these houses from burning.”

Unfortunately, others weren’t as lucky, with a home and multiple structures being destroyed, displacing many to Winnipeg and Selkirk.

“Lots of people are upset they had to leave home, there were quite a few who had to leave without taking anything, so they are struggling right now not having essential needs,” said Stephanie McCorrister, an emergency team member.

Meanwhile, Peguis First Nation fire chief Shaun Spence says this response has been full hands-on deck with support from community members, other First Nations, and RCMP. While the fire is now out, Chief Stand Bird said there is still a lot of work to be done.

“We’re out there battling this fire to save our homes, our community members’ homes, and to make sure our communities are safe,” said Spence.

Stan Bird, Chief of Peguis First Nation added, “We’re of course, still at high risk for my fires, and we are taking steps to mitigate that, like backburning and using our heavy machinery to build fire guards.”

Chief Bird highlighted the quick response from both levels of government, surrounding communities and Indigenous stakeholders in Manitoba, saying they are going to lift the state of emergency.

“We are lifting it today and we’re going to start moving our people home. Some assessments have been conducted and it’s okay for some families to return, but that will be ongoing.”

This fire comes on the heels of repeated disasters in Peguis, including severe flooding in 2011 and just three years ago, displacing over 1,000 people. Chief Bird says so many have still not returned home, which is why he called on the government to create a permanent flood solution.