Stranded Manitoba truckers rescued

WRONG LAKE, Man. — About three dozen commercial trucks remain stuck axle-deep in northern Manitoba mud, but more than 80 drivers who had been stranded last week have been saved and accounted for.

According to news sources, Manitoba Search and Rescue, in co-operation with RCMP and a few trucking firms, picked up all the drivers that were stranded with their rigs for five days on thawing winter roads.

George Leonard, search commander with Manitoba Search and Rescue, said helicopters spent days swooping down and lifting truckers out of the muddy roads.
Many of the stranded truckers siphoned fuel from each other to run equipment and keep warm at night, shared supplies and satellite phones.

Meantime, First Nations communities in Northern Manitoba had been without supplies and essential materials.