Manitoba invests $13.6 million in rural and First Nation wildfire preparedness

May 15, 2024, Manitoba — The Manitoba government is investing over $13.6 million in 16 projects to support the capacity of rural municipalities First Nation communities to respond to wildfires, Municipal and Northern Relations Minister Ian Bushie said in a press release.

“Investing in infrastructure that supports fire protection and safety is critical to building community resilience to environmental emergencies and unforeseen events. That is why today, our province has committed over $13.6 million in funding to build our province’s resilience to emergency events and to protect our communities. We extend our gratitude to the firefighters of Manitoba who work tirelessly to keep Manitobans safe.”

Through top-up funding to the Strategic Municipal Investment Fund and the Northern Affairs Fund, the province is supporting 16 critical infrastructure projects to enhance local capacity to respond to on-the-ground emergencies and wildfires.

Projects include construction and improvements to new and existing fire halls, the deployment of individual trucks and full fleet replacements, and the purchase of new equipment.

The government outlined the full list of projects in a statement, which include:

• Benito Fire Station replacement for the Municipality of Swan Valley West;
• Pine River Fire Hall upgrades for the Rural Municipality of Mountain;
• a new fire truck for the Municipality of Roblin;
• fire department upgrades for the Rural Municipality of Gimli;
• fire fleet replacement for the Town of Winnipeg Beach;
• fire truck replacement for the Rural Municipality of Coldwell;
• a new fire truck for Moosehorn Fire Department for the Rural Municipality of Grahamdale;
• fire hall parking lot upgrades for the Municipality of Bifrost-Riverton;
• fire hall expansion and purchase of fire truck for the Rural Municipality of Victoria Beach;
• fire hall expansion for the Town of Niverville;
• a triple combination pumper for the Town of Beausejour;
• a new fire station for the Rural Municipality of Headingley;
• a new fire engine for the Rural Municipality of Springfield;
• a fire pumper truck replacement for the Rural Municipality of Stuartburn; and
• fire equipment for Northern Affairs Communities.