A group of B.C. firefighters is heading to Manitoba Wednesday to assist with a number of wildfires burning in that province.
Manitoba has been dealing with drought conditions for many weeks, and recently, a swath of wildfires have burned through Central and South Manitoba, forcing hundreds to evacuate.
On Wednesday, 41 BC Wildfire Service firefighters and two support staff are heading east to help.
"British Columbia has a long history of offering a helping hand to other provinces and countries when they need assistance fighting wildfires. We are pleased to do that again now,” said Katrine Conroy, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.
"The BC Wildfire Service recognizes the importance of sharing firefighting resources with other jurisdictions, and we welcome this opportunity to provide assistance to Manitoba.”
Conroy says B.C. is able to share its resources at this time due to the lack of widespread wildfires here at home. But fire officials have been warning of drought conditions all across Western Canada and the risk of wildfires this brings moving into the summer.
Conroy says the B.C. wildfire crews will be keeping separate from the Manitoba crews to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19.
Last fall, 200 B.C. firefighters headed south to assist California and Oregon with their wildfires. Sixteen firefighters caught COVID-19 during their deployment.
