B.C. sending almost 100 firefighters to Ontario, after 42 deployed to Manitoba

VICTORIA — British Columbia Forests Minister Ravi Parmar says the province is sending almost 100 wildland firefighters to Ontario, where fires have been threatening several communities near the Manitoba border.

Parmar says the deployment comes after B.C. sent 42 firefighters to Manitoba, where a blaze in the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet this week destroyed 28 homes and cottages and left two people dead.

He says the deployments are part of an inter-agency agreement that allows provinces to ask each other for wildfire support.

Cool temperatures and rain have kept B.C.’s own fire situation manageable, Parmar says, allowing the inter-provincial deployments.

He says it’s up to Ontario to decide where the B.C. firefighters will be sent.

Parmar says typical deployments to other jurisdictions last two weeks, but government is assessing the situation on a daily basis.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 16, 2025.

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press