Fire People
Fire 14: Red Lake 1980
May 2010 – September 2010

Red Lake Fire #14, which began on May 21, 1980, was a massive forest fire that threatened the Red Lake area, resulting in nearly 4,000 people being evacuated by military aircraft to Winnipeg.  To this day, most local residents who lived through this ordeal still have vivid memories of the experience.  Depending on their perspective at the time, they describe it as one of the most exciting or most traumatic event of their lives. 

In 2010, the Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Red Lake Legion, organized an exhibition to mark the 30^th anniversary of Fire 14. The project involved producing a documentary DVD featuring archival images and interviews with people who worked on the fire and others who lived in Red Lake at the time. 

A book was published featuring recollections by 30 individuals, ranging from the crew leader who conducted the initial attack on the fire to a young mother who was terrified of being separated from her four children during the airlift. Reproductions of news articles, a timeline of the fire, and detailed coloured maps showing the day by day progress of the fire, are included in the publication.

Copies of the Fire 14 DVD ($20/copy) and the Fire People book ($25/copy) can be purchased from the Heritage Centre, both on-line and in person. 

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