Water Crisis At Canoe Lake
Thursday, April 06, 2006 at 13:48
Maintenance workers and engineers at the Canoe Lake Cree Nation are doing what they can to fix the water situation there.
On Monday night, sewage from a lagoon spilled over into the community’s drinking water supply.
Chief Guy Lariviere says the root problem has been fixed and bottled water has been trucked in — but not before some people apparently drank the contaminated water.
Officials with the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority says they are monitoring the situation closely.
A spokesman says the authority already has people on the scene assessing the problem.
Their main concern right now is the possible spread of diseases like Hepatitis A.
The authority is promising the water in Canoe Lake will be checked thoroughly before anyone is allowed to drink it.
Meanwhile, Lariviere says water lines to homes will have to be flushed and tested before residents are allowed to turn the taps back on — a process that could take several days or even weeks.
He says Indian Affairs has been helping the band out, but the costs are going to be tremendous before everything is resolved.
Some residents have left the reserve to stay with relatives in Jans Bay, Beauval, Meadow Lake and Ile-a-la-Crosse until the crisis is resolved.