Pimichikamak Cree Nation has been having a bad year

In less than a year, Pimichikamak Cree Nation, just north of Lake Winnipeg, has endured a wildfire evacuation and a cascading infrastructure breakdown that left thousands without heat, water, or safe homes.

The 2025 wildfires

In late May 2025, wildfires in northern Manitoba intensified rapidly, pushing heavy smoke and flames toward Pimichikamak Cree Nation (Cross Lake). The situation escalated quickly enough that leaders feared Highway 373, the only road to the provincial highway network would be cut off, trapping residents.

A mandatory evacuation was called on May 28.

Since heavy smoke closed the local airport, people could not fly out. Instead, evacuees began leaving by bus and private vehicles, many travelling about 40 kilometres south to Norway House Cree Nation. The mass evacuation caused a bottleneck at the Ross Island Ferry crossing over the Nelson River East Channel. Some vehicles sat in line for as long as nine hours trying to cross to safety.

Over the following days, when conditions allowed, commercial and military aircraft helped move people out.

Norway House overwhelmed by the numbers

Norway House Cree Nation prepared to receive about 1,000 evacuees.

Instead, it received closer to 6,500.

The sudden population surge strained the community’s capacity to house, feed and offer medical care to the evacuees that included Elders, children, and people with chronic health needs.

A province-wide wildfire surge scattered evacuees across Manitoba and beyond

Eventually, as provincial and federal supports ramped up, evacuees were moved further south to cities like Winnipeg, Thompson, and Brandon.

Pimichikamak’s evacuation was part of a broader wildfire surge in Manitoba that forced roughly 21,000 people from their homes across the north.

“This is one of the largest evacuations in our province’s history,” said Lisa Naylor, Manitoba’s minister in charge of emergency management.

The scale of that displacement created logistical challenges almost everywhere evacuees went.

Manitoba opened reception centres and organized emergency accommodations. But even with mass shelters set up, including large indoor facilities like soccer complexes and Winnipeg’s convention centre, there simply weren’t enough private spaces to house everyone comfortably.

With around 15,000 hotel rooms across Manitoba, many already occupied during peak summer tourism season, officials struggled to place evacuees in hotels. Some people from Pimichikamak were ultimately sent as far as Niagara Falls, Ontario.

For families, Elders, and people with health conditions, large open shelters filled with cots weren’t ideal. Pimichikamak leadership also raised concerns about duplication and inefficiency in the evacuation system, including evacuees needing to register separately for transportation and accommodations, and the overlap between multiple agencies and governments.

Some members of the community evacuated again due to smoke

Residents were allowed to return home in mid-June after the immediate fire threat eased. But one week into July, conditions changed and the community needed to re-evacuate elders and people with medical conditions. A voluntary evacuation order was also issued while air purifiers were flown in to help reduce smoke exposure indoors for those who stayed behind.

A water crisis followed the fire

But the wildfire evacuations were not the end of Pimichikamak’s crisis year.

On Aug. 19, Pimichikamak declared another state of emergency because of a breakdown in the community’s water treatment infrastructure.

Chief David Monias said the water treatment plants, which draw water for the Nelson River, are “archaic and beyond repair,” with replacement parts difficult to find.

The breakdown left the community’s south side without running water. Monias estimated that the failure directly affected about 30 per cent of residents. It also impacted the local school and community healthcare centre.

Boil-water advisories added to the pressure

The federal government’s short-term drinking-water advisory database shows the community has faced repeated advisories in August.

A boil-water advisory was issued on Aug. 6 and lifted on Aug. 9. A second advisory was put in place on Aug. 13 and remains in effect.

“Access to safe drinking water is not a luxury, it is a basic human right, and it is a treaty right,” Monias wrote on Facebook back in August.

The December power outage

Late at night on Dec. 28, Pimichikamak was hit with another emergency: the power went out. But this wasn’t a “couple hours without electricity” kind of outage.

The power was out for about four days after a 300-metre span of the main power line running between two islands in the Nelson River snapped during a cold snap when temperatures plummeted below –40 °C with wind chill.

More than 4,000 residents were left without heat, light, or running water. By the second day, essential systems began to fail: the community’s water treatment plant and sewage lift stations went offline, the reservoir ran dry, and indoor plumbing froze.

During the outage, Pimichikamak lost one trailer to fire. Extinguishing it used scarce water reserves.

Some households relied on candles, camp stoves and portable generators for warmth and light, increasing the risk of fire and carbon monoxide poisoning.

Others sheltered at the public works building, and others at the old nursing station that still had back up heat.

Evacuating yet again

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak opened a relief centre in Thompson, about 2.5 hours south by road.

Pimicikamak declared a state of emergency on Dec. 29 and began moving people to safety. Over the following days, approximately 4,400 residents were evacuated from Pimichikamak.

While some went to Thompson, others were evacuated to Norway House.

After Thompson and Norway House reached capacity, Pimicikamak worked with the Canadian Red Cross to charter buses and flights to Winnipeg.

Repair challenges

One of the community’s water treatment plants was back online on Dec. 31 after a generator was connected to the community’s water.

The aging transmission line was difficult to repair, particularly given the weather and terrain.

Manitoba Hydro repaired the downed line with the help of helicopters.

Chief Monias said the community has asked Manitoba Hydro for years to reroute the line along the highway to improve access and reliability. 

In the end, the community was without power for about four days. Power began to be restored on the evening of Jan. 1.

Water, sewer and housing damage

When electricity and heat were finally restored, the next phase of the crisis began. Frozen pipes and water holding tanks thawed and ruptured, releasing water into homes and public buildings.

To prevent further damage, officials shut off water to several buildings, including a school, a youth centre and an arena.

Since water and sewer systems froze within hours of the blackout, Randy Spence, the community’s lead plumber, said residents had little chance of protecting their homes. There was no time for backup systems to make a difference.

Officials now say every home affected by the outage will require repairs, ranging from minor fixes to major reconstruction.

Damage included cracked toilets and burst faucets, flooded basements and crawl spaces, ceilings collapsed under the weight of water, sewage backed up into bathrooms, and electrical panels compromised by moisture. Faulty electrical sockets ignited four fires.

Repair crews have been moving from house by house, thawing frozen water tanks and assessing the damage. 

As of Jan. 26, Pimicikamak’s water and sewage treatment plants were still not fully functional.

Calling in the military

The Manitoba government asked the federal government to send military help.

Seven members of the Canadian Forces Joint Operational Support Group arrived, including experts in construction engineering, plumbing and heating, as well as electrical generation.

Their role included assessing damage to water, sewage, and power systems, and advising on logistics and project management.

Before leaving, the military provided recommendations about what needs to be fixed in regards to the water and sewer plants. 

Meanwhile, a 130-person work camp has been established to house incoming crews as recovery efforts continue.

What caused the power outage?

The cause of the outage remains under investigation.

Chief Monias has sought to draw attention to the broader condition of the community’s electrical infrastructure, releasing a video that showed rotting wooden power poles he said were long overdue for replacement.

Manitoba Hydro has said that shotgun pellet damage was discovered on the broken transmission line as well as on aerial marker balls attached to the line, though the utility emphasized that it has not determined whether the damage caused the failure. Such damage, Hydro noted, can weaken electrical infrastructure over time.

The explanation drew sharp criticism from Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Inc., which represents northern First Nations. The organization said introducing the possibility of gunfire amounted to a distraction from what it described as longstanding and systemic underinvestment in northern infrastructure.

Damage to the Town of Cross Lake

Cross Lake mayor Bob Smith said 27 buildings, mostly homes, flooded after pipes burst. The town has a little over 500 residents.

Backup generators kept water and sewer systems running; without them, a mass evacuation would have occurred.

Many homeowners there lacked insurance, raising concerns about long-term recovery.

Smith also warned of mould risks from standing water.

The mayor is seeking provincial disaster financial assistance.

Political and historical context

There is a long-standing dispute between Pimicikamak and Manitoba Hydro tied to the 1977 Northern Flood Agreement (NFA).

Pimicikamak stopped paying Hydro residential bills about 10 years ago as leverage to push for full NFA implementation.

Arrears now exceed $20 million, about one-third of unpaid electricity bills province-wide.

Four of the five First Nations affected by the NFA signed later implementation agreements; Pimicikamak did not, arguing the original agreement was never fulfilled.

Chief Monias said Hydro has failed to meet key NFA promises that included providing potable water, poverty eradication and employment.

It’s been argued that the arrears are insignificant compared to the profits Hydro has generated from flooded lands and unfulfilled obligations.

Manitoba Hydro says it has invested nearly $500 million in compensation and infrastructure and pays $12 million annually to the community

Ongoing concerns

Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak and community leaders say the outage highlights decades of underinvestment in northern and First Nations infrastructure.

In 2015, Berens Rivers First Nation had a two-and-a half-day power outage.  Pauingassi and Little Grand Rapids First Nations were without power for a few months in 2021.

Chief Monias said extended power outages would never be tolerated elsewhere in Manitoba.

The province has asked Manitoba Hydro to review its emergency response and identify ways to improve electrical reliability in the Cross Lake area.

As Pimichikamak continues recovery and repair, the core question governments are facing isn’t only how to respond faster next time. It’s whether the infrastructure can survive the next disaster at all.