Yellowknife Minor Fastball Association says players' medical information found at dump

The Yellowknife Minor Fastball Association is alerting parents and guardians after documents containing players' medical information, including health-care card numbers, were found at the city dump.

A letter to parents and guardians signed by association president Kristal Melanson on Monday evening says the association recently learned records containing players' names, birth dates, health card numbers, medical information and parent/guardian contacts were found at the Yellowknife dump on May 5.

"At this time, we have no reason to believe that this information has been compromised," the release reads.

In the letter, the association says it's uncertain how the records got to the dump, but that they may have been improperly disposed of following a cleanup of its equipment shed this past weekend.

It's believed that the information included in the records pertained to participants for the 2018 season, the letter states.

The association does not detail how many players may have been affected, but says it will reach out to parents of those that have been directly impacted. According to an article by local news site My Yellowknife Now, 180 kids were registered with the league in 2016, with more waiting to be placed on a team.  

"The board will be examining all policies and practices related to the storage and disposal of player information in the coming days," the letter reads, adding that process could take up to a month.

The association says it also plans to provide instructions to coaches on how to properly store and dispose of information.

The association says it believes the records were part of team rosters shared with coaches at the beginning of each season to ensure they have information needed to respond to medical emergencies.

As part of its annual review in September 2018, the association says its board decided not to collect health card information for the 2019 season due to privacy concerns.