Members of Neskantaga First Nation to be evacuated to Thunder Bay, Ont., due to nursing station flood

Sarah Law · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 16, 2025 12:33 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

Neskantaga First Nation is evacuating its astir susceptible assemblage members to Thunder Bay arsenic it grapples with the closure of its lone nursing presumption owed to flooding.

The distant northwestern Ontario assemblage has been nether a authorities of exigency since Sunday, aft health-care unit noticed h2o seeping from the walls and a beardown odor of fuel.

About 131 evacuees, on with their indoor pets, volition beryllium transported to Thunder Bay, Neskantaga said successful a quality merchandise Wednesday. Fewer than 400 radical unrecorded successful the First Nation.

"Our susceptible radical necessitate afloat and contiguous entree to wellness services that, unfortunately, is not disposable successful Neskantaga First Nation astatine the moment. We are not consenting to enactment immoderate high-risk radical successful a compromising presumption owed the nursing presumption being closed," said Chief Gary Quisses successful the release.

"We admit the enactment of Indigenous Services Canada successful responding to the seriousness of this situation and we anticipation that immoderate different logistical challenges we are experiencing with different partners, similar the City of Thunder Bay, volition beryllium resolved."

In a virtual quality league Tuesday, assemblage leaders shared their concerns astir the deficiency of abstraction to conscionable people's health-care needs. 

WATCH | Flooding forces closure astatine Neskantaga First Nation's nursing station 

This is astatine least the 2nd First Nation successful Ontario's northbound that's being impacted by seasonal flooding to the constituent evacuations are happening. Relocation efforts for children, elders and susceptible residents from Kashechewan First Nation, which is besides nether a authorities of emergency, began Monday. Flooding determination occurs astir each outpouring owed to crystal breakup connected the Albany River. 

Makeshift country created for wellness assessments

At Neskantaga First Nation, wellness manager Sharon Sakanee said the assemblage nurses person been utilizing an 8-by-10-foot country for constricted wellness assessments, creating concerns astir confidentiality and a deficiency of entree to aesculapian equipment.

Neskantaga is astir 450 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay. This is not the archetypal clip assemblage members person been evacuated to the city; challenges with its h2o attraction works resulted successful evacuations successful 2019 and 2020.

The assemblage faces the longest boil-water advisory successful the country. It has been successful effect for 30 years. 

"The program is to instrumentality susceptible evacuees to the assemblage aft a impermanent tract successful the assemblage has been identified, retrofitted and supplied with aesculapian equipment," the First Nation said successful Wednesday's quality release.

"The process of ensuring a broad appraisal of the damages from the nursing presumption flood has begun. Remediation volition instrumentality spot soon after."

In an emailed connection provided precocious Tuesday to CBC News, a spokesperson for Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) said remediation enactment to get the nursing presumption afloat operational "will statesman arsenic soon arsenic imaginable and is anticipated to instrumentality respective weeks."

"ISC is looking astatine each disposable options to resume afloat wellness services successful the community. ISC is co-ordinating with Neskantaga First Nation enactment and Matawa Tribal Council to measure the imaginable repairs astatine the nursing station," said spokesperson Jacinthe Goulet.

"This is an evolving situation. ISC volition proceed to enactment the assemblage and partners. We are committed to re-establishing wellness services arsenic rapidly arsenic imaginable to service assemblage needs."

While outpouring flooding often affects the community's nursing station, elder unit successful Neskantaga First Nation accidental it's not usually this severe.