Flight pre-registration now available for Hay River, Kátł’odeeche First Nation, and Fort Smith evacuee re-entry

Public Service Announcement

Yellowknife (September 11, 2023) – To help evacuees of Hay River, Kátł’odeeche First Nation, and Fort Smith prepare to return home from Alberta once evacuation orders are downgraded, pre-registration for re-entry flights will open at 8:00 a.m. on September 12, 2023.

Pre-registration is the first step in developing passenger lists for re-entry flights. From there, appropriate aircraft will be booked based on need. Re-entry flights can then be scheduled to depart from Alberta once a date is set for evacuation orders to be downgraded.

Once an evacuee’s flight information is available, it will be confirmed with them by phone. They will also receive information on ground transportation from designated locations to the assigned airport.

Pre-registration will close on September 14, 2023 at 8:00 p.m.

 

Quotes

“Tomorrow’s launch of the pre-registration process for re-entry flights is an encouraging sign for evacuees from Hay River, Kátł’odeeche First Nation and Fort Smith, and my hope is that evacuees from Enterprise are not far behind you. This means you are one step closer to going home or getting started on a path to recovery. I encourage evacuees to take advantage of this process so that we can identify needs and start developing passenger lists to allow for a safe and efficient re-entry once evacuation orders are downgraded."

- Shane Thompson, Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs

 

Quick Facts

  • Evacuees are encouraged to start pre-registering as soon as possible so that flights can be organized to get people home once re-entry dates are established.
  • The pre-registration process will be open from 8:00 a.m. on September 12, 2023 until 8:00 p.m. on September 14, 2023.
  • Pre-registration for re-entry flights is not intended for essential workers asked to return by their employer.
  • Information shared for the purpose of pre-registering will be handled with the utmost care and security, and will be disposed of once re-entry is complete.
  • A separate pre-registration process for Enterprise evacuees will be organized at a later date when re-entry details for that community become available.

Related Links

 

For media requests, please contact:

Jay Boast

Municipal and Community Affairs

Government of the Northwest Territories

Jason_Boast@gov.nt.ca