With Manitoba experiencing its worst wildfire season on record for the past 30 years, the Rural Municipality of Gimli’s emergency measures coordinator is continuing to work with all levels of government to have the Gimli Recreation Centre upgraded so that it can be used as an emergency relief facility for the public in the event of hazardous air quality events or extreme temperatures.
Don Emes, who also works as the emergency coordinator for the Town of Winnipeg Beach and the RM of Armstrong, said the initiative to transform the Gimli Recreation Centre into building that can offer large numbers of people relief is “on track and progressing,” with the municipality behind the project and the province and federal governments aware of the importance of having such a centre.
“The wildfire situation in Manitoba this year has been devastating with a tragic loss of life,” said Emes. “This kind of disaster with smoke that can be toxic drives greater interest in having a relief centre.”
Emes said the municipality is fully on board with the initiative to retrofit the recreation centre and is engaged with the provincial and federal governments.
The federal government has guidelines and standards for relief centres, and it’s taking a bit of time to design and engineer certain features for the Gimli Recreation Centre, which is decades old and does not meet today’s standards, said Emes. Newer centres, such as sports complexes in Winnipeg that have been used as evacuation centres for northern residents, were built with those standards in place.
“If you live in an old house and try to sell it, and maybe the plumbing and electrical are not up to snuff, it won’t sell,” said Emes.
To help RM of Gimli residents obtain information on how toxic wildfire smoke can be on a given day, the RM installed a smoke sensor at the Gimli Airport, said Emes. And there are also smoke sensors in Winnipeg Beach, Arborg and Teulon, to name a few places.
“The public can gain access to this information,” said Emes. “They can go online to obtain a smoke reading then make more informed decisions about their activities on smoky days.”
The 2025 wildfire season is the “worst on record in the past 30 years,” according to the provincial government.
Over 1.99 million hectares have burned in the province as of Aug. 18, with the Manitoba Wildfire Service continuing to respond to 153 active wildfires. There’s been a total of 417 wildfires to date.
The provincewide state of emergency under the Emergency Measures Act expired on Aug. 22, according to a provincial news release, and the government is not extending it. The state of emergency was first declared on July 10 and extended on Aug. 7.
Wildfire smoke from fires burning in the Canada’s northern territories, B.C. and across the Prairies has resulted in numerous air quality statements and warnings from Environment Canada this year, and thick toxic smoke cancelled some outdoor events in Manitoba.
The RM of Gimli and council were contacted for comment about the upgrading of the recreation centre and the anticipated completion date of the project but did not respond.
