The long-standing stereotype of Canada as a cold country is melting away more quickly than many would have thought.
On Thursday, May 29, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew announced a 30-day province-wide state of emergency as 17,000 people were forced to flee from their homes. The fires were precipitated by dry, hot conditions throughout the province – the forested areas, a tinderbox waiting to ignite. Homes, cherished memories, and even lives are at risk.
As the situation is emerging, ADRA asks that all those inclined to prayer do so fervently for the people of Manitoba and Saskatchewan—that they may be safe, that first responders will be granted wisdom and courage beyond what is natural, and that there will be minimal losses to both nature and to humanity. As the situation unfolds, ADRA will continue to provide updates on potential upcoming emergency responses on our part.
While this is the most high-profile fire of 2025 in Manitoba, it is hardly the first. In fact, before the recent announcement, the province of Manitoba had already logged 100 other wildfires since the beginning of the year.
We have seen a new annual pattern emerging in places across the country over the last few years. Alberta. The Northwest Territories. Quebec. Ontario. Nova Scotia. British Columbia. These are only the provinces and territories with the most prominent and publicly noted wildfires. The harsh reality is that the wildfire season of 2023 saw fires across all of Canada’s ten provinces and three territories. And the pattern has continued year after year. There are currently 134 wildfires burning across western Canada – half of which are considered “out of control.”
“Canada” is also not the only people group at stake. Premier Kinew’s call for prayer brought other nations and communities into focus: Pimicikamak. Cross Lake. Mathias Colomb. These names are reminders that the decisions that Canadians make about how to steward our natural environment have immediate and perhaps existential consequences for nations that were here before there was a “Canada.”
Canadians and Indigenous communities share the same landmass and environment. Right now, the virtues of Justice, Compassion, and Love are deeply important for all of us who call this land home.
“Canada is not cold.” May the world say this about our hearts—not our spring season.
