Spring Ice BreakUp Flooding: Evacuation of James

1
Spring Ice BreakUp Flooding Evacuation of
James Hudsons Bay Communities

• alPHa Conference
• June 15, 2009
• Cedar Meadows Resort Timmins, Ont.

2

• Populations
• Moosonee 3000
• Moose Factory 3500
• Kashechewan 1700
• Fort Albany 900
• Attawapiskat 1900
• Peawanuck (Weenusk) - 250

3
Public Health in First Nations Communities

• Community Health Nurses - Mandatory programs
• - Immunization
• - Communicable Disease Control
• - Access to Health Care primary care role
• Community Based Health Workers
• - Health promotion activities
• Community Medicine Specialists
• Environmental Health Officers
• - environmental health programs

4
Spring Ice Break-Up Floodwatch Evacuation

• Floodwatch an annual event
• Break-Up 2008 Risk to all communities intense
  preparation required
• Flood of Winisk - 1986

5
2008 Preparation Public Health and other health
services

• Anticipate possibility of evacuation for 6 week
  period April to mid-May
• Review nursing staff levels all hands on deck
• March nurses update client profiles pharmacy
  profiles for all community members at risk
• Equipment review satellite phones, flashlights,
  health centre pharmacy stock, medical supplies
  and equipment, testing of generator
• Health records prepare to move if required
  locked boxes for transporting narcotics medical
  equipment for use in evacuation
• Emergency preparedness information to community

6
2008 Preparation Cont

• Client evacuation lists developed based on health
  status and level of health risk
• Joint Emergency Management Steering Committee
  (JEMS) guidelines
• Medevac Stage Require transport through ORNGE
• Stage 2 Risk due to chronic disease,
  prenatals, young children, elderly etc.
• Stage 3 All other residents including
  community responders, police, nurses etc.
• Families to same evacuation sites and/or
  community
• Requirements for translation services

7
Community Floodwatch

• Community coordinators hired by First Nation -
  April
• EMO teleconferences began once signs of ice
  deterioration
• Wait, watch monitor water levels
• Timing important takes time to evacuate
• Rising water levels
• Declaration of State of Emergency by community
  Chiefs
• Moose Factory
• Fort Albany
• Kashechewan
• Attawapiskat

8
Community Evacuation

• Moosonee, Moose Factory, Peawanuck no
  evacuation
• Kashechewan, Fort Albany, Attawapiskat
• Evacuation of clients requiring medevac began
• Stage 1 evacuation followed
• Stage 2 in Fort Albany only due to flooding
• Health services response
• Support to evacuation centres - current
  medications and health status information to
  caregivers by nurse-in-charge working from
  community
• Continue to provide health services for remaining
  community members and emergency response
  personnel until evacuation halted

9
Return to Community

• Assessing the damage repairs and renovations
• Fort Albany nurses residences for JBGH flooded
• Unpacking, undoing
• Re-establishing of health programs, routines,
  school
• Delayed stress reactions exhaustion community
  members and staff mental health support needs
  to be ongoing

10
Post Evacuation Debriefing Lessons Learned

• Emergency response was effective in preserving
  life and preventing illness
• Effective collaboration between First Nation,
  Federal, Provincial partners as well as health
  social agencies
• Not all community members had Health Card numbers
• Indian Status numbers for non-insured health
  benefits (drugs, glasses etc.)
• Dogs
• Refusal of some community members to evacuate

11
Post Evacuation Impact on Community

• Community upheaval
• Loss of school time for children educators
  provided for prolonged evacuation by host
  community
• Children confined for days childrens
  activities through Native Friendship Centre
• Teens boredom get into mischief
• Health Care Workers local nurses must go with
  children and elderly parents if they are
  caregivers

12
Impact on Community Cont

• Life goes on! Babies are born, people get sick
• Health care services impacted at receiving
  community site
• Overcrowding of evacuation sites discomfort for
  community members - arena accommodation for some
• Challenges of communal living spread of
  infection scabies, head lice
• Uncertainty worry Stress related ailments
  with increased time away from community

13
(No Transcript)
14
Flood of Winisk May 16,1986

• Destroyed community
• 2 deaths population of approx. 200
• Ice jam caused water to rise quickly
• People scrambled into boats climbed on top of
  houses

15
Emergency Response - Winisk

• EMO floodwatch in Ontario not as well organized
• Community level floodwatch
• Helicopter rescue and airlift to airport
• Community Health Representative only in community
• Physician and 2 nurses Moose Factory General to
  triage on site CHN in Moose Factory
• Aircraft at airport to transport community
  members to other communities

16
Aftermath Flood of Winisk

• Site for Peawanuck chosen 20 miles upriver
• Spring 1997 tent frames at new site
• Nursing visits health assessment, medication,
  immunization, treatment skin disorders,
  drinking water, mental health support

17
(No Transcript)
18
Spring Break-Up on the Coast

• Risk of flooding reality of life for James
  Hudsons Bay communities annual event
• Requirement for effective tripartite government
  and agency collaboration
• Emergency planning response has saved lives

19

• Gitchi -Meegwetch!