Manitoba town hit by high water levels, cut off road access calls for military help

SWAN RIVER – The mayor of a town in western Manitoba is calling for military support after rapid rainfall has cut off all road access. 

The town of Swan River, located 480 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg near the Saskatchewan boundary, issued mandatory evacuation orders for some parts of the community on Wednesday. 

This is the second time in less than a month that the town has had to contend with rising water levels that have flooded homes and roads. 

“It’s still quite bleak,” Mayor Lance Jacobson said in a phone interview on Thursday. 

The deluge of rain has put pressure on the hundreds of volunteers who have been working around the clock to protect homes even as the water flowed so fast in places that sandbags were washed away. 

Jacobson said he has relayed his request for military support to the province, with hopes of crews being on the ground to help with cleanup efforts. 

“These guys have been doing this for a month. They’re tired and they need help,” said Jacobson. 

The premier’s office said a request for military help has been sent to the federal government. 

Floodwaters in Swan River look to be approaching two metres deep in many areas, said Jacobson. 

While the heavy rains earlier in the week that caused the flooding have lifted, the water appeared to have only slightly receded as of Thursday morning, he added.

“You wake up in the morning and you hope that everything is gone away and, you look out and there’s still a lake in places where it should be a park.”

Some areas of the Parkland region, which includes Swan River, received as much as 200 millimetres of rain in recent days, leading to overland flooding, water on roadways and dozens of washouts. 

Premier Wab Kinew was on the ground in the region on Thursday to tour flood-ravaged areas.  The visit was also to include a stop in Swan River.

The recent deluge has damaged up to 50 roads in the province, with some being covered by water or washed out. 

As of Wednesday, all the roads into Duck Mountain Provincial Park were washed out, stranding about 200 registered park users. 

Elsewhere on the Prairies, heavy rain and landslides closed roads and stranded campers in southern Alberta and destroyed highways and damaged homes in parts of Saskatchewan.

Towns in Saskatchewan’s east-central region were working to pump out water and clear roads.

The communities of Canora and Kamsack, northeast of Regina, declared states of emergency and applied for disaster financial assistance.

Barry Hvidston, Kamsack’s chief administrative officer, said issues with the sewer system have caused flooding in basements of many homes.

The deluge has also carved out chunks of Highway 8 near the town, forcing it to close, while other provincial highways also remain impassable.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2026. 

— With files from Ian Bickis in Winnipeg and Jeremy Simes in Regina