Crew battling the wildfire in Piney shares experience
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Fifty-one firefighters are working in eastern Manitoba to put out the 13 active fires that are plaguing rural communities and provincial parks. Sharing their story of battling the blaze in Piney is La Broquerie deputy fire chief Miguel Dube.
“Some of the operations there are sprinklering properties and some frontline work, as well emergency preparedness and property assessments. It’s all being directed by the office of the fire commissioner (OFC), so they’ve been providing us with tasks and we’ve been going out to complete any tasks they ask of us,” he said last Thursday.
“We’re just basically trying to change the local conditions around these buildings and create some moisture well in advance of the fire approaching to minimize the potential damage.”
Temperatures reached the low 30s in the most southeastern point in the province last week with winds reaching 41 kilometres an hour feeding the fire and impeding firefighting efforts.
Between six and 12 crew members from La Broquerie are fighting the fire in Woodridge and the surrounding areas with one structure pumper, a grassland unit, and wildland crew and equipment. Dube said the fire is ranked four and six in intensity with flames in some places as high as the trees.
“We’re not fighting those conditions because the risk is too high. Most of the work is preventative at this point,” he said.
“Our guys are definitely quite tired from the last couple of weeks of firefighting, but nobody has been injured as a result of firefighting operations out of our station,” he noted.
Dube advised that people should stay away from the fires as it could impede firefighting efforts. He commends local businesses for their support as they have been providing food, parts for equipment, or supplies.
“There’s been a lot of support even though it hasn’t been direct firefighting related, it’s been really good. That’s another positive in this type of situation. People seem to come together and we’ve definitely noticed that over the last couple of days.”