On Friday, June 8th, rising water levels in the Liard River caused a flood in the community of Nahanni Butte. Most residents of the community were evacuated to Fort Simpson, where they remain. The GNWT is currently assessing conditions in the community to determine when it will be safe for residents to return to their homes.
Municipal and Community Affairs (MACA)
Deputy Premier Jackson Lafferty, MLA Kevin Menicoche and Chief Clayton Konisenta visited Nahanni Butte yesterday, June 18th, and met with evacuees in Fort Simpson. Senior officials from the Executive, Municipal and Community Affairs, Transportation, the NWT Housing Corporation and NWT Power Corporation (NTPC) also attended.
Preliminary assessment of the community shows that flood waters have receded considerably, but there is still a substantial amount of standing water in many low spots. Damage to private homes does not appear to be as bad as first suspected, but not all homes were accessed. There has been damage to community infrastructure, including the band office and gymnasium.
The power plant was flooded and remains out of operation. NTPC estimates it will take three to four days to resume operations and another two to get the community back on line. Community infrastructure, such as telephones and water treatment, will remain out of service until power is returned to the community.
MACA does not recommend that residents return to the community at this time. Estimates are that it will take one to two weeks to restore community services, making it safe for residents to return.
Once a more thorough assessment of damage in Nahanni Butte is complete, MACA will work with the community government of Nahanni Butte to determine whether this event will qualify for funds under the Disaster Assistance Policy.
Once it is safe to return to the community, transportation will be arranged for evacuees and MACA will work with the community government and other partners to help ease the transition for residents.
MACA will lead a committee of regional and local representatives, including the Chief and Band Manager, and representatives from NWTHC, NTPC, Environment and Natural Resources and NorthwesTel to organize clean-up efforts.
Transportation (DOT)
Water has receded from the runway at Nahanni Butte, but it will require several days of warm weather for the ditches to drain and for the runway to dry out to allow for a proper assessment. An assessment crew from Airports division is expected to visit Nahanni Butte later in the week to assess the runway conditions and any remediation required.
Ferry operations at Fort Simpson (Lafferty) and on the road to Wrigley (Johnny Berens) have resumed. Delays are being experienced on the Lafferty because declining water levels require regular work on the approaches.
An inspection of the Nahanni Butte access road did not note any problems. However, the road traverses some wet lands that might not stand up to repeated heavy loads. A further inspection of the road is underway to determine its capacity.
Kevin Brezinski, Director of Public Safety with the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs, will be available for media interviews from 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM on Friday, June 22. To organize an interview, contact David Maguire, Communications and Web Advisor, at 920-3092.
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
Information current as of 4:30 p.m., June 19, 2012. Further updates will be issued as new information becomes available.