Nickel Belt News Volume 60 • Issue 28
Friday, July 10, 2020
Thompson, Manitoba
Serving the Norman Region since 1961
Northern highways need federal disaster assistance to cope with effects of high rainfall, says Northern Manitoba MP
BY IAN GRAHAM
EDITOR@THOMPSONCITIZEN.NET
Northern Manitoba NDP MP Niki Ashton says high rainfall is wreaking havoc on highways north of Thompson and that the federal government needs to provide disaster assistance to remedy the problem. A portion of Highway 280 42 kilometres east of Split Lake was experiencing flooding on July 2, according to a Manitoba highway conditions report just before 9 a.m. and there was high water at the edge of the road for a two-kilometre stretch beginning about 35 kilometres east of Split Lake the previous day. A washout made the highway impassable June 30. There was also an incident a few days earlier in which water was flowing over Highway 391 north of the Nelson House junction, reportedly due to beaver activity in the area resulting in blocked culverts. “Our north has had record rainfall and it’s meant that highways like PR 280 have washed out, Highway 391 has been deeply damaged and other roads including the one to Sherridon have been affected,” said Ashton, who represents the Churchill-Keewatinook Aski riding, in June 30 press release. “People have been left stranded. Communities are struggling. Federal disaster assistance must be made available to address the situation.” Thompson saw 117.8 millimetres of rain fall in June, the second-highest total in the last six years behind 2018, when there was 161.6 millimetres of rain. In 2016 there was only 44.3 millimetres of rain in Thompson in June, while in 2015, 2017 and 2019 there was about 60 millimetres for the month. The June 30 washout on Highway 280, which took around six hours to repair, delayed a few shipments of food to Manitoba Hydro’s Keeyask dam construction site, which now has a full complement of about 1,000 workers onsite, said a Manitoba Hydro spokesperson, while the one that occurred
Thompson Citizen photo courtesy of Niki Ashton An image posted on Northern Manitoba MP Niki Ashton’s Facebook page shows a washed-out section of Highway 280 between Split Lake and Gillam June 30. July 2 was past the Keeyask junction and had no effect on operations. Ashton said cutbacks by the province, which is responsible for building and maintaining highways, is part of the problem. “The hiring freeze for civil servants, the cutbacks to the maintenance of our highways and the neglect of northerners’ infrastructure needs has contributed to this situation. Northerners depend on highways to get in and out of their communities, access essential services and live their lives. The federal government must be part of the solution to invest and restore critical infrastructure now.” The high amount of rain has also affected the boat launch and docks at Paint Lake Provincial Park, with the lake having risen high enough that people using the docks have to go through the water to get onto them now, though the Liz Lake launch is still accessible as normal, according to a post by Paint Lake Lodge. The high water also forced Paint Lake Lodge to shut down its fuel service June 30.
Thompson Citizen photo courtesy of Paint Lake Lodge High rainfall in June has left much of the Paint Lake marina parking lot underwater and the docks only accessible by passing through the water.
Man charged with second-degree murder in Pukatawagan homicide was employed as a guard at RCMP detachment
Grand Rapids RCMP investigating homicide
Manitoba RCMP said June 30 that a man has been arrested in connection with a body found in the woods near Pukatawagan on June 26. August Thunder Caribou, 22, of Pukatawagan was arrested June 29 and charged with second-degree murder for the death of the 22-year-old
Grand Rapids RCMP are investigating a homicide after a 31-year-old man died of injuries resulting from a reported shooting incident. Police were called to a report of a shooting at a River Road residence around 6:45
woman whose body was found in the woods. He was scheduled to appear in provincial court in The Pas June 30. RCMP said Caribou began working as a guard at the Pukatawagan RCMP detachment June 5. He was employed by the Corps of Commissionaires and responsible for monitoring prisoners
being held in detachment cells. He last worked a shift at the detachment June 20. The information about his employment at the detachment was shared in the interest of transparency and not because there is any link between his employment, the victim and the charge laid against him, said the RCMP.
a.m. July 5 and located the victim, who was transported to the nursing station where he died of his injuries. Grand Rapids RCMP and RCMP Major Crime Services are investigating the death.