Two weeks ago, the hall on the 3rd floor of the RBC Convention Centre was being used as a Folklorama venue. Today it's become a temporary home for Jessie Beardy.
A home they'll have to share with hundreds of other people escaping the forest fires in Northern Manitoba.
"It was smoky," recalled Jessie Beardy. "The sky was dark and the burnt pine needles fell down on the ground."
The evacuees here have been given cots to sleep on, and some blankets. But not all are staying in such Spartan conditions.
Hundreds of evacuees have been set up in Winnipeg and Brandon hotels.
Darlene Monias said while she's grateful to be someplace safe, she wonders why she wasn't selected for the more private accommodations.
"How am I going to handle my babies," wondered Monias? "They’re six and eight, and they're all running around, scrambling around!"
According to the Canadian Red Cross, there simply aren't enough hotel rooms available for every evacuee.
"Keep in mind we have 850 people from Poplar River First Nation already evacuated earlier this month," said Canadian Red Cross Vice-President, Shawn Feely. "So the hotel rooms are at a premium."
Still, with some elders now sleeping on cots, Assembly of First Nations Manitoba Regional Chief Kevin Hart believes some people will have to be moved.
"The respect for our elders are first and foremost," said Hart. "So, I can't see that being a problem with young able bodied people transferring out of hotels to give up their beds for the elders."
But any transfers will have to happen on another day after everyone has found safety away from the fire.
