Evacuations continue as Eabametoong First Nation remains without running water

Eabametoong First Nation remains in a state of emergency as the northwestern Ontario community marks more than a week without access to running water. 

The remote Ojibway First Nation of about 1,600 people is approximately 360 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, Ont. It has been in a state of emergency since a fire broke out at the Eabametoong First Nation Water Treatment Plant last Wednesday.

The blaze was determined to be arson and more than one suspect has been apprehended, Eabametoong Chief Solomon Atlookan said, declining to provide further details. 

In a statement to CBC released Tuesday, Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) said officials are working with Matawa First Nations Management, Eabametoong First Nation leaders and the province to develop evacuation plans and guarantee community members' well-being.

It is also examining the work required to repair the water treatment plant's damages.

ISC's spokesperson said the department is funding bottled water of 15 litres per person per day to use for cooking, drinking and personal hygiene. It has also set up shower kits and washing stations, an on-site health clinic and a clean-up for hazardous waste from the fire.

Flights to Thunder Bay continue

In addition, ISC said it is covering the total cost of community evacuations to Thunder Bay. As part of ISC's Emergency Management Assistance Program (EMAP), the department said it can provide 100 per cent funding for response and recovery costs for eligible First Nations and provinces, territories, third-party management providers and host communities in these situations. ISC has confirmed that Eabametoong First Nation "is covered by ISC's EMAP for these eligible response and recovery costs."

The fire caused extensive damage to the treatment plant. Atlookan said there's no access to water for bathing, drinking and using the restroom. The smell of sewage has been detected in some homes already. 

"The wastewater is not going anywhere, except into our system," Atlookan said. "Some of the houses are starting to smell. That's going to become a bigger problem as we go on." 

Without safe drinking water, Atlookan announced an evacuation to Thunder Bay for vulnerable groups, such as elders and people who are chronically ill. The first flights left Eabametoong First Nation on Sunday morning and have continued throughout the week.

A flight arrived in Thunder Bay on Monday evening shortly after 6 p.m. ET with roughly 30 children, young people, elders and their caregivers. 

"We had a total of 400 people that needed to leave right away," said the chief. "We're working on it now. The people that we identified needed to be out there, so [it will] make things a little bit lighter and easier to distribute and work here, to look after the people that are going to remain behind here."

Between 1,000 and 1,200 people are staying in the community. Though fewer than 300 are still waiting to get out, Atlookan said getting access to aircraft for everyone to leave has been a challenge.

Community 'deflated' after losing water access

Eabametoong First Nation's inability to access clean water is a situation familiar to First Nations.

Numerous reserves have been under water advisories because they have no access to safe drinking water.

Eabametoong First Nation has been on a long-term boil-water advisory since August 2002. Neskantaga First Nation, approximately 450 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, has been under a boil-water advisory for 28 years, the longest of any other First Nation in Canada.

Jason Morningstar, founder and chief executive officer of Mspections Inc., which specializes in First Nation housing in Kingston, Ont., arrived in Eabametoong First Nation last week through a partnership partially funded by Habitat for Humanity to do electrical upgrades to houses.

Now Morningstar, along with a team of six volunteers, including his 16-year-old son, Theron, shifted gears to get a water supply for community members. He said Eabametoong First Nation has been through difficult times for many years.

"They've reached out for help a number of times and have gotten very little," said Morningstar. "So what I see is a community that is already deflated. They don't set the bar high when these incidents happen. They're very self-sufficient. We've seen an opportunity to help with a very important role, which is water distributions to the houses."

Morningstar said he gives this community credit for helping each other. While Morningstar has seen leadership become exhausted, he said the community has gotten through the toughest part together as a team.

"Water should not be a luxury. It should be a necessity. But up here, unfortunately it is a luxury, and when that luxury is gone, you get deflated," Morningstar said. "This community gets deflated, and when we were able to provide them with that continuous source of lake water just for something as simple as flushing a toilet, they were extremely thankful."

Atlookan said a final report will be released Friday to see if the water treatment plant will be safe to resume. If it's still deemed unsafe, he expects the evacuation will continue.

"After all this happening with the contamination going into this trying to avoid the contamination going into our water system, that is one of the biggest issues," said Atlookan. "There's going to be a little uneasy feeling to even drink water from the tap. They're doing whatever they can to make sure absolutely no contamination goes into the system before they even open it to make water into the community" for distribution.

CBC spoke with Eabametoong First Nation community members who said they're scared at the the idea of the report coming back with negative results and then forcing everyone to evacuate their homes.

"We are going to get tired, I'm sure. It's tiring already," said Atlookan. "So we're hoping we're going to see the results we want to hear."