People in Pikangikum First Nation are using the little fuel they have left to shine headlights into their homes as a way to escape the darkness as wildfires continue to damage hydro poles in the region.
The remote Ojibway community in northwestern Ontario has been without power for three days. Five other communities in the region — Deer Lake, Sandy Lake, Poplar Hill, North Spirit Lake and Keewaywin First Nations — are also now experiencing outages.
Paddy Peters, chief of Pikangikum, said area wildfires have damaged six poles along the Wataynikaneyap Power line, creating a chain reaction in half a dozen First Nations.
“People are running out of food,” said Peters. “We need a lot of fresh food in our community. We need baby milk, Enfamil, Pampers. We need lights.”
Tiziana Baccega Rosa, senior media relations adviser for Hydro One, provided an emailed statement to CBC News just after 5 p.m. ET on Monday.
“Through its distribution system, Hydro One Remote Communities, a subsidiary of Hydro One Inc., provides electricity from Wataynikaneyap Power’s transmission line to remote and isolated communities in Ontario’s far north,” Baccega Rosa said.
“Hydro One is mobilizing 20 transmission crew members along with off-road equipment to support Wataynikaneyap Power’s restoration work.”
While people in Deer Lake and Sandy Lake have access to power through emergency diesel, Baccega Rosa said well over 1,000 customers in the other four First Nations are without power.
An update from Sandy Lake First Nation said crews were expected to replace the first hydro pole on Monday.
“Hydro One has also offered assistance and is moving additional equipment in from Kenora and Dryden,” the First Nation said on Facebook on Monday afternoon.
Internet, cell and telephone lines remain down.
Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler of Nishnawbe Aski Nation, which represents 49 First Nations across Treaties 9 and 5, sent an emailed statement to CBC News on Monday.
“There is a growing concern with the threat to many of our remote communities including Pikangikum, Keewaywin and Poplar Hill,” Fiddler said.
“We are worried about the elderly and those needing air conditioning, and the spoilage of food and harvested wild game in stored freezers. We have been in touch with Wataynikaneyap Power and hope that power can be restored as quickly as possible.”
The Northern Store in Pikangikum has been closed for three days, said Peters, “and I’m sure a lot of their products, essential goods, are spoiling.”
Communication systems have also been compromised, Fiddler said, making it difficult for leaders to reach emergency responders and government officials.
“There are vulnerable members of these communities who will need to be medevaced out to ensure they are able to access the services they need,” Fiddler said. “We have addressed these concerns to various levels of government and are following up with senior officials today to ensure that our communities receive immediate support.”
In the meantime, evacuation efforts continue in Pikangikum due to a 31,000-hectare fire, known as Red Lake 62, just seven kilometres away. The fire is shifting eastward, away from Pikangikum. Still, Peters said, Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) should have warned him about it sooner.
“This should have never happened. Somebody made the wrong decision out there. When the fire was 30 kilometres away, we should have been warned and told to get ready for an evacuation,” he said.
CBC News has reached out to the MNR and is awaiting a response.
However, Carolane Gratton, a spokesperson for Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), said in an emailed statement, “Ontario is in the midst of a very active wildfire season, and Indigenous Services Canada is working in partnership with all affected First Nations, as well as First Nations leadership and organizations, the province of Ontario and other partners to respond.
“Ensuring the safety and well-being of community members is our top priority, and we continue to support evacuation efforts and emergency needs as the situation evolves.”
About 4,000 people live in Pikangikum, located in Treaty 5 about 500 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay. A command centre has been set up at the school, the only building with power, thanks to a backup generator.
While about 2,000 evacuees were initially expected to be sent to Toronto and Mississauga, Peters said, “that’s too far to send my people.”
Instead, about 500 people have been sent to Thunder Bay and 50 prenatal women went to Sioux Lookout, he said. More evacuees are on the way, either boarding Dash-8 planes or choosing to self-evacuate.
“As a leader, I’m very concerned [about] the number of people that are still here,” said Peters.
As for Red Lake 62, Ontario Forest Fires said an implementation order remains in effect for the area, limiting the use of many roads and lakes.
“Ongoing drought conditions in the Red Lake sector continue to support a really active fire behaviour and deep burning fires, which are stubborn to extinguish and take longer periods,” fire information officer Chris Marchand told CBC News on Monday afternoon.
“There is very little in terms of rain in the forecast, though our winds are expected to remain in a favourable direction for some of the larger fires where firefighting operations are taking place.”
There are 10 crews, seven pieces of heavy equipment and 18 aircraft fighting Red Lake 62, with more workers expected to arrive in the area in the coming days, he said.
While rainfall has been patchy across the region, the wildland fire hazard is highest along the Manitoba border, “which has seen a dry spring and summer, and has these ongoing drought conditions,” said Marchand.
More than 20 air quality statements are in effect across northwestern Ontario, including for Pikangikum, due to wildfire smoke.
With no definitive timeline for restoration of power, Peters said he’s calling for more resources to be delivered as soon as possible.
“We’re sending out an SOS. Whoever is listening, we need help,” he said. “We need prayers. If you’re a prayer warrior out there, pray for our community, pray for our people.”
