June 11, 2012
On Friday, June 8th, rising water levels in the Liard River created a flood risk in the communities of Fort Liard and Nahanni Butte. River levels continued to rise and reached flood levels in Nahanni Butte, leading to the evacuation of the community by air. Members of the community who were evacuated are staying in Fort Simpson. Fort Liard was not evacuated.
Municipal and Community Affairs (MACA)
MACA worked with the community governments in Fort Liard and Nahanni Butte to monitor rising water levels and enact emergency plans as required. Once it was determined that Nahanni Butte would need to be evacuated, MACA helped coordinate GNWT resources to assist in the evacuation and reception of evacuees.
MACA worked with a number of partners over the course of the emergency, including other GNWT departments, the Government of Canada, the RCMP, and community governments. MACA will work with the department of Public Works and Services to survey damage in the community.
Transportation (DOT)
The Department of Transportation coordinated aircraft to evacuate community members from Nahanni Butte, and provided support during the emergency to coordinate other resources as required. Once it is safe to return to the community, DOT will coordinate return transportation for those who were evacuated. Ferry operations at Fort Simpson have been suspended, and the ferry will be out until high flow rates and the amount of debris permit safe operations. This could mean an outage for an unknown number of days.
Health and Social Services
The Department of Health and Social Services, in close consultation with the Deh Cho Health and Social Services Authorities, is helping to coordinate emergency evacuation services. Health and Social Services Authorities are making provisions for evacuees who have been received in Fort Simpson.
For more information:
Shaun Dean
Press Secretary
Government of the Northwest Territories
Phone: (867) 669-2304
David Maguire
Communications and Web Advisor
Municipal and Community Affairs
Government of the Northwest Territories
Phone: (867) 920-3092
Issued: June 11, 2011 at 11:30 a.m. – Updates will be issued as the situation demands.