Welcome to Thunder Bay

THUNDER BAY – Kashechewan Deputy Chief Amos Wesley states, “As of this evening, the majority of the people from Kashechewan are now scattered all over Ontario. I want to wish them well. Take good care of your selves, your children”.

“Remember to behave yourselves. Stay out of trouble. We all know how the world works on the outside. At this time, I like to thank the Flood Coordinator Lawrence Sr Goodwin, our Emergency Evacuations Coordinator Enoch Williams for the hard and stressful work that they did. You did very good. I know at times, you felt like quitting but you kept on going. I would to also like thank the councillors that sacrificed and stayed behind for their people in their time of need. You know who you are. The Kashechewan people know who you are. Thank you to all the evacuees for listening. We only care about your health and safety”.

Wesley states, “The last Hercules flight just left for Ottawa 50 minutes ago. There are only so much of us here. Mostly men. It’s so quiet. On another note, the river is receding. They have started to open up the gate valves to let the ditch water out of the dyke. Health Center just needs to be re mediated asap….and if so and completed…..the people should start making their way home again”.

A large number of the evacuees are here in Thunder Bay. They are housed at the Victoria Inn, and some at the Airlane.

Growing efforts are underway to welcome the Kashechewan residents to our city. Right now the Canadian Red Cross and twenty-five volunteers are assisting the residents.

The costs of the evacuation are being paid by the federal government, the City of Thunder Bay has a cost coverage agreement with Aboriginal Affairs.