First Nations appeal for firefighting funds

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This article was published 18/05/2023 (887 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two remote First Nations in Manitoba are waiting to find out if Ottawa will provide more money for firefighting, after a recent series of fatal or serious blazes.

The councils of Tataskweyak Cree Nation and Bloodvein First Nation have appealed to Indigenous Services Canada for additional gear and training for fire departments which lack resources.

“We need this equipment for the safety of our community,” said TCN Chief Taralee Beardy. “We’ve waited patiently. We matter. Our people matter.”

Beardy and Bloodvein Chief Roland Hamilton are both concerned about what could happen if there is another serious fire in their communities or others which have fire safety gaps.

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” said Hamilton.

In 2021, a Statistics Canada study found residents of First Nations were 10 times more likely to die in a fire than non-Indigenous people.

The federal government’s annual firefighting budget for Manitoba’s First Nations is just over $3 million.

Beardy said she submitted a request for new equipment, including oxygen masks, at least three to four weeks ago. The northern community’s fire truck is still out for repairs, which could end up costing $15,000, she said.

TCN purchased a used truck for more than $90,000 in late March. Beardy said the truck was found on a “buy, sell, trade” page on the internet.

About a week after the vehicle arrived, firefighters found a 25-year-old woman’s body after extinguishing a fire at a house in the community, more than 700 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

Beardy said the fire engulfed the home quickly. “The older houses tend to burn faster.”

Without proper training, firefighters had to learn how to use the truck on their own, the chief said.

In February, a 17-year-old girl was hailed for rescuing children from a burning eight-unit apartment complex. The blaze, which displaced almost 50 people, renewed calls for fire safety help.

Beardy said the fatal fire remains under investigation, while the cause of the apartment blaze hadn’t been determined.

Last month, Winnipeg Coun. Russ Wyatt brought forth a motion calling for the city’s “end-of-life” emergency vehicles to be sent to war-torn Ukraine. It was later defeated at the council level.

Beardy said northern communities would welcome any fire trucks that still have life in them.

“It would be nice if they looked in their own backyards,” she said. “I know Ukraine is in a war. It’s unfortunate what’s happening there. We’re contributing to this economy.”

In April, a 49-year-old man was found dead at a home in Bloodvein, after RCMP officers and community members worked together to extinguish a fire.

Bloodvein’s fire truck, which was bought used about a decade ago, wasn’t operational.

“It doesn’t work anymore,” said Hamilton. “A lot of people were concerned, for a First Nation not to have resources to fight fires. For a lot of people, it kind of opened their eyes.”

Hamilton said Bloodvein, more than 200 km north of Winnipeg, asked the federal government for help after the fire.

The community lacks proper equipment and would welcome more training for its firefighters.

Hamilton wants federal officials to go to First Nations to observe equipment shortages or fire safety gaps.

“There are a lot of communities that do need the resources,” he said. “The government really needs to assess each community and see what we have instead of putting us through the hoops of applying and filling out forms.”

In March, an 11-year-old boy died after he was pulled from a burning house in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, west of Brandon.

Shamattawa First Nation declared a state of emergency during the same month, after multiple suicides and a fire that destroyed a multi-unit residential complex. The northeastern community, which doesn’t have a fire truck, raised concerns about a lack of equipment.

Some northern First Nation leaders have contacted northern Manitoba NDP MP Niki Ashton (Churchill—Keewatinook Aski) for assistance.

A housing and infrastructure crisis in Indigenous communities has exacerbated the situation, she said. “As that becomes worse, the vulnerability to these kinds of fires increases.”

Ashton called on Ottawa to work with communities to address gaps and reinstate or increase funding for fire safety programs run by tribal councils.

“This is Canada. It’s 2023. It’s unacceptable that communities in our country do not have access to the right fire equipment.”

Indigenous Services Canada did not respond to a request for comment before deadline.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching