More members of the Canadian Armed Forces are assisting Pimicikamak Cree Nation as the community works to recover from a devastating power outage that caused widespread infrastructure damage and forced mass evacuations.
Three more military members arrived Wednesday, joining seven others already there. Chief David Monias told Global News they are assessing critical infrastructure, including frozen water treatment plants and a sewage system that is currently not functioning.
“Right now we have the military there to look at the infrastructure,” Monias said. “We’re looking at the water plant, both south and north water plants, and they’re also looking at the sewage plant that is really non-functional at this point in time.”
Monias said untreated water is being pumped through the system and sewage is being discharged into the nearby river.
Roughly 8,500 people were affected by the five-day power outage, which struck during a stretch of extreme cold weather that saw temperatures plunging to nearly -40 C with wind chill.
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Nearly 400 evacuees remain in Winnipeg, while others relocated to nearby communities or are slowly beginning to return home.
“They need their homes the most. They want to go home. That’s what they’re telling me,” Monias said. “The sense of community is lost when they’re displaced to different cities.”
Crews, including electricians, carpenter and housing inspectors, are working throughout the community. With military assistance, contractors are identifying frozen pipes, repairing electrical systems and fixing structural damage such as flooring, drywall and foundations.
Monias said the crisis was preventable, pointing to the location of the power line supplying the community.
“If the hydro line was coming down the highway, we would have been able to get to that broken line in hours, not days,” he said. “Because it was through the bush, it took days.”
— With files from The Canadian Press
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