Residents of the Lake St. Martin First Nation, whose homes were destroyed in a devastating flood almost a decade ago, met in Winnipeg after courts decided to end benefits for the evacuees.
Lake St. Martin Chief Adrian Sinclair is concerned that some evacuees could end up homeless with the benefits coming to an end. 1,400 people were displaced by the flood.
Sinclair said that he’s working on a plan to ensure evacuees with nowhere to go, receive financial help.
After water was diverted from the Assiniboine River into Lake Winnipeg in 2011, extreme flooding in Lake St. Martin forced the evacuation of the entire community and destruction of all homes, buildings, and community infrastructure.
Of the 1,400 people evacuated, only 475 have returned home. According to Sinclair, 314 families still have nowhere to go.
The federal government ended evacuee benefits as of January 31st, but 130 evacuees will receive benefits until the end of March when more homes in Lake St. Martin will be ready for people to move in.
The government has said that it expects that by the end of March, 350 homes will be completed. They point out that it is more than the 182 homes that were present in the community before the flood.
