Grass fire season underway in Manitoba

A Manitoba community already has a burn ban in place due to the risk of brush and grass fires. Jeff Keele has more.

Despite the colder spring weather, grass fire season has officially started in Manitoba.

Over the last week or so, Winnipeg firefighters have already battled a few of these blazes.

“Even though the ground is wet in some spots still, there’s still the potential for grass fires,” said Brad Mazor, district chief of fire rescue operations.

On Friday there was a grass fire south of the Perimeter off St Mary’s Road. A week ago, a grass and brush fire broke out at the Transcona Bio Reserve, which was 4,000 square metres in size. Just days before that, there was also one near Lagimodiere Boulevard and Dugald Road.

Mazor said this is par for the course in May, as the province prepare for another dry summer.

“It could be one of the hottest on record from what I understand,” Mazor said.

“They are expecting more rain this year too. But it all depends how the rain is. If we have hot weather and you get a small rain day it could be dried up pretty quickly.”

The fires are also springing up outside of Winnipeg. Late last month a grass fire tore through a property near Tyndall, Man.

Homeowner Velma Aiken said it was scary.

“Especially when it got so close to my property, my house,” she said.

On Friday, Brandon fire crews, with the help of other departments, battled a large grass fire south of the city.

Chief Terry Parlow said it took nine hours to tackle.

“It was fairly large, several miles in area,” Parlow said.

Parlow noted four to five properties were at risk but were ultimately saved. He added three people suffered minor injuries, including a firefighter.

At least one municipality has already put restrictions in place. A burn ban is in effect in the RM of Piney with only recreational fires in approved pits permitted.

Mazor said there are other measures you can take to prevent grass and brush fires, like properly disposing of cigarette butts, and keeping leaves and firewood away from your house.

“An ember can travel a distance, catch that on fire, now your structure is on fire,” he said.

“Even gutters, a lot of people leave the leaves in their gutters, if an ember travels it has the potential to ignite the leaves.”