In the centre of Ontario's drug crisis, Fort William First Nation fights for new facility

Sarah Law · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 02, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 8 hours ago

After declaring a authorities of exigency implicit its toxic cause situation past summer, Fort William First Nation hasn't stopped advocating for much resources for its members.

The Ojibway First Nation, which neighbours Thunder Bay, Ont., has purchased a installation astatine an undisclosed, off-reserve determination to enactment radical who person completed a detox programme arsenic they hold to get into treatment.

The problem? Neither the provincial nor national authorities has agreed to assistance enactment the facility's operating costs, according to Chief Michele Solomon.

"Because it's not connected reserve, we are not funded oregon assisted by the national government, and the provincial authorities backing sources propulsion america backmost to the national authorities — truthful we go a blistery murphy betwixt these governments," Solomon said.

The Thunder Bay district, which encompasses Fort William, continues to person the highest opioid-related decease complaint successful Ontario astatine astir 5 times the provincial average, according to the latest study from Ontario's Office of the Chief Coroner.

"Whatever challenges you spot Thunder Bay facing … this is amplified successful a assemblage similar ours due to the fact that of the deficiency of resources that are disposable astatine our fingertips," said Solomon.

About 1,000 radical unrecorded successful Fort William, portion the First Nation itself has conscionable nether 3,000 members. While the assemblage has services disposable to assistance those babelike connected substances, including a assemblage intelligence wellness and addiction harm simplification outreach program, Solomon hopes the addiction attraction installation volition span the gaps created by agelong hold times to get into treatment.

"We're already looking astatine a $1-million concern into this facility, and we privation it operational. We privation our radical to beryllium capable to usage this facility," Solomon said.

"We believe that this is simply a exemplary of attraction that different First Nations and different communities, I think, could incorporated … and I judge that it's a missing portion successful the intelligence wellness and addiction system."

Province, feds talk to addictions investments

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) spent much than $440,000 connected intelligence wellness and addictions enactment successful Fort William First Nation successful 2024-2025 done the Indigenous Health Equity Fund, said spokesperson Pascal Laplante successful an emailed connection to CBC News connected Friday. 

In the aforesaid fiscal year, "ISC provided astir $225,000 successful caller yearly backing nether the Indigenous Health Equity Fund to enactment Fort William's wellness priorities, as determined by the community," helium said.

While Laplante did not specifically notation the addiction attraction installation Fort William has purchased, helium said "ISC is alert of the challenges that Fort William First Nation is experiencing arsenic they spot a emergence successful addictions successful the region.

"Meetings person been held with the assemblage and the state of Ontario to sermon semipermanent supports and code captious needs successful effect to their authorities of emergency," Laplante said.

LISTEN | Opioid situation continues to deed Thunder Bay territory — and Fort William First Nation — hard 

The closest treatment centres to Fort William are Ka-Na-Chi-Hih (youth treatment) successful Thunder Bay, and Dilico Adult Residential Addiction located in Fort William First Nation, helium said. Furthermore, ISC's Non-Insured Health Benefits programme covers question costs to the closest due and disposable attraction centre.

When asked astir the province's enactment for Fort William's addiction attraction facility, a spokesperson for Ontario's Ministry of Health provided an emailed statement.

While they did not notation immoderate backing specifically for Fort William, they said the authorities "is utilizing each instrumentality we person to assistance radical get the attraction they request by expanding entree to safe, broad intelligence wellness and addiction services," said spokesperson Ema Popovic on Thursday.

In the Thunder Bay area, this includes enactment for:

• A caller Homelessness and Addictions Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub.
• Nearly 60 caller addictions beds and harmless sobering beds astatine Dilico Anishinabek Family Care and St. Joseph's Care Group.
• A caller Youth Wellness Hub.
• The Superior North Specialized Treatment and Alternative Responders mobile situation effect team.

Creating a betterment community

Long Lake #58 First Nation has been taking a community-led attack to addressing alcoholism and addiction by supporting corporate healing with its members.

The Ojibway assemblage does not person a dedicated detox centre connected reserve. Instead, they've been bringing groups of radical to a First Nation-owned edifice successful Thunder Bay — astir 300 kilometres distant — to enactment successful a 10-day detox programme earlier going into treatment.

WATCH | Long Lake #58 First Nation supports dozens of members arsenic they detox

The First Nation is celebrating 22 of its members who precocious completed a attraction programme astatine Dilico Anishinabek Family Care.

"Seeing them look truthful steadfast and really privation to bash the enactment and inactive privation to proceed their healing, and conscionable moving towards bettering their lives, it's truly astonishing to see," said Noreen Agnew, manager of Long Lake #58's set rep program.

Participants completed a month-long post-treatment programme astatine Pasha Lake, wherever they did accepted activities connected the onshore specified arsenic sportfishing and sharing circles. Now, they're backmost successful Thunder Bay and preparing to instrumentality to their First Nation aft a astir four-month journey, Agnew said.

Kyle Arnold is simply a assemblage enactment idiosyncratic specializing successful addiction for Long Lake #58. He's much than six years into his betterment from addiction.

"I deliberation it's truthful important for them to heal unneurotic due to the fact that they are creating a betterment assemblage wrong their community, and I deliberation that's the portion that's been missing," Arnold said of the radical from Long Lake #58.

"A batch of them are related, they're family, and it's strengthened them arsenic a halfway — and it's bringing betterment into [Long Lake #58]."

Agnew said a cardinal portion of the program's occurrence has been listening to participants "and letting them pb us."

"We're giving them the accidental to archer us, 'OK, this is what we need.' So OK, let's assistance them bash that," she said. 

Back successful Fort William First Nation, Solomon said she's going to proceed pushing for community-led solutions to the cause crisis.

"When you person services that are designed by the assemblage that they're intended to serve, past it volition person those values successful mind. It volition person those ways of knowing and being successful mind," said Solomon.

"The much the idiosyncratic of the work tin supply input to what that work looks like, the much apt it is to person success."