Manitoba First Nations share $3.4M for fire protection

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This article was published 05/04/2023 (931 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As the chief of Bloodvein joined his colleagues in demanding improved emergency services, after a 49-year-old man died in a house fire on the reserve, Ottawa revealed the annual firefighting budget for Manitoba First Nations is just over $3 million.

“It seems to be a growing concern,” said Chief Roland Hamilton.

Tuesday’s tragedy is the latest in a string of recent fires on Manitoba First Nations, some with deadly consequences.

Just two weeks ago, a home went up in flames on Bloodvein, although no one was hurt.

Early Tuesday, the northern community’s fire truck wasn’t working and the “skeleton crew” of volunteer firefighters improvised by sending water delivery trucks to the scene, the chief said.

They were able to extinguish it before it spread, the chief said, but weren’t able to rescue the man.

RCMP officers entered the home after the smoke cleared and found the victim, whose name hasn’t been released.

The community needs proper firefighting equipment, but training is crucial, Hamilton said.

“I think there needs to be more training done in the First Nations,” on emergency response and the use of equipment, he said.

On April 2, a 25-year-old woman died in a fire on Tataskweyak Cree Nation, 700 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

An 11-year-old boy from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation died after a house fire on March 25.

Earlier this week, Tataskweyak Chief Taralee Beardy spoke out about the need for more federal funding for proper firefighting equipment, training, and adequate housing for First Nations.

“We do have many communities like mine that are lacking fire safety equipment or lacking a fire truck,” she said on Tuesday.

In response, the federal department of Indigenous Services Canada stated it devotes an average of about $43.9 million annually to fire protection in First Nations across Canada. The money is intended to include training costs, but the department doesn’t conduct the training.

About $3.4 million goes to Manitoba First Nations for fire protection.

“Approximately $2 million goes directly to Manitoba First Nations for operation and maintenance of fire protection services. The remainder goes to technical advisory organizations, such as tribal councils, who are funded to provide training, education and technical assistance in support of fire services in First Nation communities,” stated Indigenous Services Canada spokesperson Kyle Fournier.

The department stated it is still working with First Nations and partner agencies to create a fire protection strategy, and expressed condolences to communities and family members who’ve lost loved ones in recent fires.

“Indigenous Services Canada recognizes that tragedies like this profoundly affect an entire community.”

The cause of the latest fire in Bloodvein is not known, RCMP stated.

Hamilton said the reserve needs community safety and health services to be bolstered amid a widespread crisis of meth use.

The chief said he doesn’t know whether drug abuse in his community has resulted in more fires; some recent fires are believed to be accidental rather than deliberately set.

He called it a daily battle against the fallout of addiction in Bloodvein, as in so many other communities.

“We’re fighting with that every day, I don’t know if that’s a cause of (these fires) or what.”

In regards to the latest tragedy, Hamilton said the man’s elderly mother was already mourning the death of a son about a month ago.

“I feel for her and for the rest of the family. It’s a great loss.”

This week, many Manitoba chiefs are in Ottawa for an Assembly of First Nations conference. They have called attention to these concerns and more, including nurse shortages and the need for health-care human resources planning.

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs called for tighter restrictions on the sale of weapons and bear spray when it met with the federal public safety minister Tuesday.

Bear spray and machetes can be purchased and resold to youth and gang members in large quantities, the assembly stated, describing it as a “critical issue on and off-reserve.”

Hamilton echoed those sentiments, saying his community has had several bear-spray assaults over the past couple of years. He said he is not aware of any on-reserve shops that sell bear spray, so believes it comes to Bloodvein from elsewhere.

“I think it needs to be better controlled,” he said.

katie.may@winnipegfreepress.com