Protesters block major Canada-U.S. border crossing in Manitoba

Protesters in semi-trailer trucks, farm equipment and other vehicles have blocked all highway lanes at Manitoba's main Canada-U.S. border crossing on Thursday.

Simon Resch, whose family owns and operates the duty free shop in Emerson, Man., said both northbound and southbound lanes on Highway 75 were shut down by protesters by the time he arrived at work early in the morning.

"There is no traffic coming through," he said. "Totally blocked."

He got to the shop this morning via back roads, but the location is otherwise inaccessible to the general public due to the blockade.

Resch said Canada Border Services Agency notified him late Wednesday night of the coming protest.

The protest is part of a number of demonstrations in cities and at border crossings across Canada by people against pandemic restrictions and a federal vaccine mandate for truckers.

Trucking industry organizations have spoken against the protests and say about nine in 10 cross-border truckers are vaccinated. 

Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, an industry lobby group, has also denounced the protest.

"CME is urging all levels of government to work together in bringing an immediate end to the current blockades and disruptions at our country's border crossings and key trade corridors," the organization said in a statement on Thursday.

About 80 per cent of Manitoba exports to the U.S. and Mexico are transported by truckers, the organization said.

"Manitoba manufacturing is already struggling with labour shortages and massive supply chain disruptions," Ron Koslowsky, CME's Manitoba division vice-president, said in a statement. 

"These blockades continue to do a lot of damage to our sector at a time when we can least afford it."

Neither Resch nor RCMP had an estimate of how many vehicles are in the Emerson blockade on Thursday morning.

RCMP Sgt. Paul Manaigre said Mounties from Winnipeg and the Morris detachment headed to Emerson Thursday morning in hopes of establishing a dialogue with protest organizers.