The youngest and oldest people in the remote northern Ontario community of Kashechewan will be moved out of the area starting tomorrow amid concerns about flooding.
An evacuation was initially planned for next Monday, but officials have decided to start the effort earlier because of concerns about damage to a dike.
Timmins-James Bay MP Charlie Angus said Wednesday that aerial observers have reported a great deal of ice, “so there is a lot of concern that this could be a very big flooding year.”
This is the fourth straight year that the community of 2,000 on the shore of the Albany River has had to move people because of flooding risks. More than 1,500 people were flown out of the community last spring alone.
Aboriginal Affairs says the cost of last year’s evacuation stands at $21 million. That figure is still climbing, as roughly 400 of the people who were flown out last year are still living in Kapuskasing while work is done to repair their homes.
Kashechewan Chief Derek Stephen has called on Ottawa to help find a permanent solution to the annual flooding.
A statement from the office of the minister of aboriginal affairs said it has offered $1.1 million to Kashechewan to assist with repairs to the dike.
