Manitoba releases interim 2025 Wildfire After Action Review
Posted April 21, 2026 6:09 pm.
Last Updated April 21, 2026 6:30 pm.
After one of Manitoba’s worst wildfire seasons in decades, the province is outlining what it says it’s changing ahead of this year, from more firefighters and better technology to evacuation planning and support for northern and First Nations communities.
The province says last year’s wildfire season was one that pushed Manitoba’s emergency response system to the limit with 445 wildfires, more than 2.3 million hectares burned, over 33-thousand Manitobans evacuated, and two lives lost.
“I remember standing in our council chambers, and I could see the flames going through the tree tops and thinking God, how are we going to get through this, that sinking feeling, but the team effort and collaboration and specialized agencies, we got through it,” said Reeve Loren Schinkel, a RM of Lac du Bonnet resident.
The province says the report identifies key lessons and outlines changes already underway before the final review is released this fall. It includes adding staff and capacity, improving fire tracking and weather mapping, expanding emergency communication tools, and improving evacuation supports.
“Building the fire base in Thompson, adding 19 new firefighters to the system, improving the weather mapping and fire tracking system so we can better prepare for a potential evacuation, we can better map proactively where fire activity may come from,” said Ian Bushie, Manitoba Minister of Natural Resources and Indigenous Futures.
One of the biggest takeaways is the need for a “One Manitoba” approach, bringing together all levels of government, First Nations, municipalities, and emergency partners, based on need rather than jurisdiction.
“We’ve done a lot of work this year in communicating with Saskatchewan and with Ontario because when other provinces take a different approach, but we share a border that has an impact. So, there’s, although in many ways we were very prepared, there’s no way to prepare for the kind of season that we had last year. But what we can do is learn,” said Lisa Naylor, Manitoba Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure.
Acting Grand Chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, Shirley Ducharme, added, “We must address the long-standing gaps that leave our people waiting weeks and months to return home and the long wait for power to be restored; these delays would not happen in the south.”
The province says it’s also investing $1.1 million into aerial firefighting, while continuing to train emergency crews across Manitoba.
