Flin Flon residents remember evacuations a year after worst wildfire season
A year later, northern Manitobans are coming to terms with the province's worst-ever wildfire season and the time they spent forced from their homes.
People in Flin Flon, Mathias Colomb Cree Nation and Pimicikamak Cree Nation were told to evacuate their homes on May 28, 2025. A provincewide state of emergency was called the same day. Thousands of people in northern Manitoba left at the same time, mostly to the south.
By summer's end, more than 33,000 northern Manitobans had to leave because of wildfires. That included about 5,000 people from Flin Flon, along with people from the nearby Saskatchewan communities of Creighton and Denare Beach.
Noelle Drimmie left Flin Flon with her husband and kids soon after the evacuation order was announced.
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"For the kids, we tried to treat this as a fun time — like we were going to go visit some friends, we're going to see people we don't see very often," she said.
"But all the while, the grown-ups are secretly looking at their phones and getting all these really kind of nerve-wracking updates."
Elsaida Alerta also heeded the call. The evacuation brought uncertainty about money. Away from her job, she was worried about keeping up with bills.
Noelle Drimmie and her family were among the Flin Flon residents who evacuated after the order was given. (Eric Westhaver/CBC)
"That was one of the biggest worries for us, as a family. 'Where we going to stay next? What's our next step?'" Alerta said.
Some essential workers stayed behind.
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Flin Flon fire Chief Jason Kuras took on a critical role with incident command. That included managing dozens of local firefighters from across Manitoba who drove north to help.
"It was just absolutely amazing, the amount of help that we got from a bunch of municipal fire departments. They instantly started sending people up, and it became very overwhelming, the amount of support that we had," he said.
Flin Flon fire Chief Jason Kuras became part of the incident command team fighting fires near his home last summer. Firefighters from across Manitoba and other provinces came north to help. (Eric Westhaver/CBC)
"I didn't know that was going to work like that, and it was absolutely amazing."
Alison Dallas, Flin Flon's deputy mayor, stayed in the community and helped out, sharing daily update videos online. She said she got messages each day from people worried about their homes.
"People, when they're messaging you, they're hurt, and they're afraid, and they don't know what's going on. You have to take that in. I knew my job was to reassure everybody while telling the truth," Dallas said.
Flin Flon emerged unscathed, but Denare Beach had no such luck.
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More than 300 homes were destroyed on June 2, only days after people left. No one died, and there were no severe injuries, but about half the village was wrecked, along with dozens of nearby cabins, including one belonging to Dallas.
Homes burned in Leaf Rapids and Tataskweyak Cree Nation, and power outages caused damage in Leaf Rapids and Lynn Lake, but no deaths or injuries happened up north.
Flin Flon deputy mayor Alison Dallas stayed there during the evacuation, helping out when needed and sending out update videos. (Eric Westhaver/CBC)
Still, for Flin Flon, the fire came too close for comfort.
"I remember collecting burnt pine needles off my deck and just going, 'Oh my gosh, that was so close.' That realization of, like, 'Yeah, my house could have gone up in flames,'" Drimmie said.
A welcoming event was held in Flin Flon, with food and essentials, when people returned. More than 6,000 people showed up.
"I could see such a sense of relief on every single person that walked through there," Dallas said.
"The divide of what you have and don't have seeped away. I could see my community coming back. I could see Flin Flon and our region breathe again."
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Kuras said local firefighters have acquired new gear and done more training to prepare for another disaster.
"We know the personnel we need for that. We've identified them. They're taking the extra steps to learning all of those positions. We've definitely grown a lot," he said.
Other locals said they feel the community is closer together now than it was before the evacuations, but there is worry about the future and how climate change could affect future fires. Several likened it to the COVID-19 pandemic — a time that affected everyone but few want to talk about.
"I think the evacuation did bring a lot of us together, especially coming back into our hometowns," Alerta said.
"It's so hard to talk about because it's something you don't want to relive again, but it makes you worried about this year, especially going through that."
Flin Flon resident Elsaida Alerta says last year's wildfire evacuation was difficult but has helped bring the community together. (Eric Westhaver/CBC)
Dallas said she thinks everyone "has a sense of PTSD," whether they stayed in the community or were evacuated.
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"To unpack that, I believe, has taken a tremendous amount of time," she said.
Drimmie said it's important to "lean on your neighbours" and be positive.
"We're not going to change this climate pattern, but we can respond to it in a safe way."
This article, originally published by CBC News on May 28, 2025, was written by Eric Westhaver.