Two residents of Eleanor Lake in the north Whiteshell Provincial Park are voicing frustrations after the evacuation order was lifted Friday.
Gordon and Carol White returned to Eleanor Lake Sunday after being in Winnipeg for two weeks during the evacuation order. They said the province covered the costs of their accommodations in the city, but that ended when the evacuation order was lifted.
“The problem for us is that being permanent residents, we have nowhere else to go,” Gordon White told Global News, adding that water still remains at their doorstep, flooding out the septic tank and field, meaning they have no running water or plumbing.
“We have no running water and no way to dispose of any water,” Gordon said.
He says the province declined to continue funding their accommodations in the city.
“They refused to. They said, ‘You’re on your own,'” he said.
“I hope the province considers looking at their emergency measures plan and perhaps considers taking into consideration residents like ourselves, who aren’t able to come back and use the property as it was intended.”
In an emailed statement to Global News, a provincial spokesperson said permanent residents can apply to have evacuation costs covered by Disaster Financial Assistance.
“When a mandatory evacuation ends but a person’s primary residence is uninhabitable due to flood damages, the person may submit a Disaster Financial Assistance (DFA) application. If it is found that they are eligible for DFA, the applicant will be assisted with evacuation costs at 100 per cent (deductible is waived for evacuation costs only),” the statement read.
“The DFA program does require that applicants incur the costs of accommodations up front and submit their invoices and proof-of-payment to the DFA program to receive their assistance.”