Latest news with #PeguisFirstNation
CBC
13 hours ago
- General
- CBC
Some Manitoba wildfire evacuees say they're still waiting for promised financial help
Financial aid has been promised to help residents fleeing from wildfires in Manitoba, but some evacuees say there have been issues with the rollout, and they're stuck waiting for the money to start flowing. On Thursday, the province said evacuees are eligible for the daily stipend if they are a permanent resident of Manitoba, have a primary residence in a community under a mandatory evacuation order, and are registered as an evacuee with the Canadian Red Cross. The financial benefit — $34 daily for each person age 13 or older and $27 for those 12 and under — will be distributed through the Red Cross and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, the province says. A spokesperson told CBC News on Thursday evacuees would start receiving the first payment within three to five days, which would cover up to the first two weeks' worth of support, with future payments based on the duration of the evacuation orders. The province says the funds will be issued via e-transfer or a prepaid card. But Peter Thibodeau, a wildfire evacuee from Cranberry Portage, said the Red Cross has already told him he will need to travel to an evacuation centre in Winnipeg to pick up the stipend. Thibodeau was forced out of his house in Cranberry Portage, about 600 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, last Saturday after wildfires knocked down power and choked the air with heavy smoke. He evacuated to Peguis First Nation, north of Winnipeg, where he's been staying at his son's home. However, he has no money to cover his own food or get gas for his vehicle, he said. Thibodeau registered with the Red Cross last Sunday and said he's phoned them at least nine times in the last week to get more information about the financial support, but he hasn't been able to get much information. "I'm waiting for another manager to call me, and that's, like, two days ago now," he said Saturday. "Every person [has] a different message." He says he was first told the stipend would be sent via e-transfer, but then another person told him he needed to get it in Winnipeg. "I don't want to go to Winnipeg for nothing," he said. "What if I get there and I get no money?" The financial assistance — amounting to $238 per week for adult evacuees — is crucial, Thibodeau said. 'They are not helping' Thibodeau said the problems underscore a lack of preparedness to deal with the current emergency in Manitoba. "It's like you gotta beg for a little bit of help. I feel like giving up," Thibodeau said. Meanwhile, Linda Smith and Tom Allen, who have had to move four times in recent weeks, also say they haven't had any financial assistance from the Red Cross yet. "They are not helping," Smith said. The couple, who are from Flin Flon, were staying at a camper in Snow Lake until the town was put under a mandatory evacuation order Friday amid growing wildfires. The couple said Friday they planned to head to The Pas. While the Red Cross is offering help in larger centres like Winnipeg, Smith and Allen said they're hoping they can return home soon and don't want to travel that far south. "It has been hell," said Smith, who added the couple have applied for employment insurance benefits, "but we have to wait for 28 days." The situation is "frustrating," said Smith. Lori Osborne, who was forced out of Pimicikamak Cree Nation with her four children, is also waiting for financial help. She only found out about the stipend on Friday via social media, even though she has been out of her community for more than a week. The Red Cross has been helping with supplies for her children, like diapers and wipes, but Osborne said she wishes there had been better communication about the stipend, which she now expects to get Sunday. "There's all of this thing that I'm doing. I'm just learning as I go," she said. "I'm lost — sometimes I don't understand, but I'm trying to learn." CBC News reached out to the Red Cross for comment on Saturday. A spokesperson said in a statement Friday that the Red Cross continues to work closely with communities and government to provide support to wildfire evacuees, and information on the financial assistance program is available on the province's website. Donations to the Red Cross are being used to assist those impacted by wildfires including through financial assistance, the statement said.
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
UN ambassador travels to Peguis to learn about repeated floods
Canada's ambassador to the United Nations has promised Peguis First Nation he will convey their concerns about repeated flooding to the Manitoba and federal governments. Bob Rae, who went to the flood-prone community this week as part of his role as president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, said he was shown examples of buildings that had been damaged by flooding as well as destruction from a wildfire this spring. 'They've got this challenge of basically living on a flood plain and there has been a lot of flooding in the past 20 years,' Rae said about the community 170 kilometres north of Winnipeg. SUPPLIED UN Ambassador Bob Rae (left) with Peguis First Nation Chief Stan Bird. 'It keeps happening consistently. So they are looking for some longer term solutions, which we talked about in broad terms. I was interested in listening to the expertise of a number of experts and people who have been working with the community for some time. 'I committed to sharing what I saw and what I heard with both the government of Manitoba and the government of Canada… I think we're going to just try to see if we can find some solutions that point the way to where things should go.' Rae, a former premier of Ontario, interim leader of the federal Liberal party, and both a longtime federal MP and Ontario MPP, was appointed ambassador to the United Nations by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2020. Rae was elected president of the UN council last year, only the second Canadian to hold the position, and only the third Canadian — former prime minister Lester Pearson was one — to be chosen in their personal capacity to preside over a UN Charter body. Rae said he has an interest in Indigenous issues, noting that earlier in his career, from 2013 to 2018, he was chief negotiator for the Matawa Tribal Council in northern Ontario, which represents nine First Nations. He said that's why when he met Mike Sutherland, the director of consultation and special projects at Peguis, at the UN's Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues last month, he agreed to travel to the community. 'It was important for me to see it,' Rae said. 'There is nothing like being there first-hand.' Rae was told about several past floods in the Peguis, including in 2009, when 3,000 people were evacuated and there was $40 million in damage; and in 2010, when 300 homes were damaged and most residents were forced to leave. Rae noted flooding has been occurring for decades and the community has commissioned several studies on how to prevent them. He was intrigued by how the community was located in that area. Rae said the community had been near Selkirk, on 'prime farmland,' until 1906, more than 30 years after a treaty was signed, 'they were moved off it there and basically forcibly displaced.' SUPPLIED A destroyed home is seen on the Peguis First Nation. 'Where they are now is in a very low-lying territory and when the rivers overflow there are serious challenges… they have a lot of expert advisers, reputable engineering firms of significant experience, and I think they are pointing the way to some practical solutions.' He said that must guide discussions with both levels of government on how to mitigate flooding. Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. 'It is not for me to dictate the solutions. It is just for me to do this role in a way that allows people to come up with some responses.' Peguis Chief Stan Bird was unavailable for comment. In a statement, the band said both Bird and the band council 'spoke openly (to Rae) about the human rights violations that continue to impact Peguis, from repeated evacuations to unsafe housing and inadequate infrastructure.' 'Ambassador Rae listened with great empathy and engaged in meaningful dialogue about the need for justice and long-term solutions… we are grateful for his visit, his willingness to listen, and his commitment to sharing our story on the world stage.' Kevin RollasonReporter Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press's city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin. Every piece of reporting Kevin produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Peguis First Nation uses its disaster expertise to help northern Manitoba fire evacuees
When news broke that a massive evacuation was needed to protect people from wildfire, Peguis First Nation stepped up. The First Nation converted its multiplex and home to the Peguis Juniors hockey team into an emergency shelter for up to 300 people. It was more than half full this past weekend. Located in Manitoba's Interlake, Peguis First Nation has repeatedly been flooded. Last month, a local state of emergency was declared after wildfires destroyed homes and heavy smoke put members' health at risk. "People from other communities stepped up, they helped us, we appreciated that. We couldn't have done it without them so we're just trying to reciprocate. We're trying to give back to the people from up north," Chief Stan Bear told CBC News. Peguis chief and council decided to take in evacuees without knowing if any financial or other support would be available because it was clear people needed help right away. "We're never given or allowed the opportunity to do things the way we think they should be done. There's always criteria, guidelines, rules and I think it hampers us," said Bird. "To see what's happening here, that shows that we are quite capable." Bird is proud of the members who are working to make sure northern First Nations facing evacuation are cared for. "They know what needs to be done and how to do it. They step up. I mean, we've been through so many disasters in our own lifetime that it's almost second nature for us," said Bird. Pimicikamak Cree Nation members are the first evacuees to take Peguis up on its offer of safety and shelter. Pimicikamak is about 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg on the shores of Cross Lake and counts 6,800 on-reserve members. Lori Osborne, 29, spent more than a day and a half getting to Peguis, including a seven-hour wait for the ferry — the only way into Norway House — about 100 kilometres away by road from Pimicikamak Cree Nation. That was followed by a night on gym mats and another wait, this time for a military Hercules plane, which evacuated them out of Norway House. The evacuation centre became overcrowded by evacuees who had driven south to escape the fire. Osborne grew tearful during an interview with CBC News as she recounted what her young children went through to escape the fire. She said the experience was hard on her and her four children, who range in age from eight months to 10 years. "I cried in the bus on the way here, but when I arrived here, I felt so welcome," Osborne said. "When I got in the washroom, I noticed towels hanging everywhere and toiletries and shampoos and toothpaste and toothbrushes, everything was all ready for when we got here. It was nice. I felt safe." She said it makes a difference being surrounded by other First Nations people. "One hundred per cent First Nations people are here and it's comfortable. I like it. I love it." Education assistant Beverly Scatch is taking care of her four-month old grandson while her firefighter daughter, Kaitlin Monias, battles the blaze back in Pimicikamak "I'm kind of scared for her. I feel like I don't know when we're going to see each other again," Scatch said in an interview with CBC News. Monias never got a chance to say goodbye to her mom and infant son before they were forced from their home in Pimicikamak. Scatch hasn't spoken to her since they left. When Scatch tried to reach her daughter Saturday, she was told "she's out in the bush right now," but Monias left word with her supervisor to find out where they were evacuated to and how they were doing. "I'm so proud of her because she did this for her kids and the people back home," said Scatch. But for now, Scratch waits, not knowing when she will speak to her daughter or return home. "I have to be strong for my grandson."
CBC
6 days ago
- General
- CBC
Peguis First Nation uses its disaster expertise to help northern Manitoba fire evacuees
When news broke that a massive evacuation was needed to protect people from wildfire, Peguis First Nation stepped up. The First Nation converted its multiplex and home to the Peguis Juniors hockey team into an emergency shelter for up to 300 people. It was more than half full this past weekend. Located in Manitoba's Interlake, Peguis First Nation has repeatedly been flooded. Last month, a local state of emergency was declared after wildfires destroyed homes and heavy smoke put members' health at risk. "People from other communities stepped up, they helped us, we appreciated that. We couldn't have done it without them so we're just trying to reciprocate. We're trying to give back to the people from up north," Chief Stan Bear told CBC News. Peguis chief and council decided to take in evacuees without knowing if any financial or other support would be available because it was clear people needed help right away. "We're never given or allowed the opportunity to do things the way we think they should be done. There's always criteria, guidelines, rules and I think it hampers us," said Bird. "To see what's happening here, that shows that we are quite capable." Bird is proud of the members who are working to make sure Northern First Nations facing evacuation are cared for. "They know what needs to be done and how to do it. They step up. I mean, we've been through so many disasters in our own lifetime that it's almost second nature for us," said Bird. Peguis First Nation welcomes Pimicikamak evacuees 24 minutes ago Duration 2:45 Members of Peguis First Nation have been forced from their homes repeatedly due to frequent flooding and even wildfires The First Nation is now turning the tables and giving back to others in their time of need. Pimicikamak Cree Nation members are the first evacuees to take Peguis up on its offer of safety and shelter. Pimicikamak is about 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg on the shores of Cross Lake and counts 6,800 on-reserve members. Lori Osborne, 29, spent more than a day and a half getting to Peguis, including a seven-hour wait for the ferry — the only way into Norway House — about 100 kilometres away by road from Pimicikamak Cree Nation. That was followed by a night on gym mats and another wait, this time for a military Hercules plane, which evacuated them out of Norway House. The plane became overcrowded by evacuees who had driven south to escape the fire. Osborne grew tearful during an interview with CBC News as she recounted what her young children went through to escape the fire. She said the experience was hard on her and her four children, who range in age from eight months to 10 years. "I cried in the bus on the way here, but when I arrived here, I felt so welcome," Osborne said. "When I got in the washroom, I noticed towels hanging everywhere and toiletries and shampoos and toothpaste and toothbrushes, everything was all ready for when we got here. It was nice. I felt safe." She said it makes a difference being surrounded by other First Nations people. "One hundred per cent First Nations people are here and it's comfortable. I like it. I love it." Education assistant Beverly Scatch is taking care of her four-month old grandson while her firefighter daughter, Kaitlin Monias, battles the blaze back in Pimicikamak "I'm kind of scared for her. I feel like I don't know when we're going to see each other again," Scatch said in an interview with CBC News. Monias never got a chance to say goodbye to her mom and infant son before they were forced from their home in Pimicikamak. Scatch hasn't spoken to her since they left. When Scatch tried to reach her daughter Saturday, she was told "she's out in the bush right now," but Monias left word with her supervisor to find out where they were evacuated to and how they were doing. "I'm so proud of her because she did this for her kids and the people back home," said Scatch. But for now, Scratch waits, not knowing when she will speak to her daughter or return home.
CBC
09-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Peguis trust built daycare on $12.3M property more than 150 kilometres away from First Nation
Social Sharing A daycare owned by an organization created to benefit Peguis First Nation promises dozens of new daycare spots for families when it opens its doors — but not for the First Nation in Manitoba's Interlake region, which is in dire need of child care. Instead, the project, touting 74 new spaces for children, was built in East St. Paul, northeast of Winnipeg and more than 150 kilometres south of Peguis. "Why wouldn't you bring it to Peguis here and build it here, when we need it here?" said Bruce Sinclair, a Peguis elder who is concerned by lack of daycare spots on the First Nation. The daycare, which is still not operational, is built on part of a plot of land that was formerly a private golf course called The Meadows in East St. Paul. The 75-hectare parcel of land was purchased in 2021 by the Peguis First Nation Real Estate Trust, an arm's-length entity formed to acquire real estate for investment and housing for the benefit of band members, according to its founding documents. The Peguis daycare in East St. Paul is part of a project initiated by Manitoba's former Progressive Conservative government to build more than two dozen daycares. The current NDP government has asked the province's auditor general to review whether that project followed procurement rules. It's unclear when the East St. Paul daycare will open its doors. With the project experiencing "significant delays," according to Education Minister Tracy Schmidt, funding for the East St. Paul project stopped flowing in November 2024 in order to complete a review. "We discovered some, what I would call, irregularities in the administration of the contract," Schmidt said at a press conference at the Manitoba Legislature near the end of April. In addition to the education department's concerns, the builder filed a lien for $2.4 million against the property. Do you have a story you want to share? Send your tips to iteam@ or call us at 204-788-3744. The trust's former chair says the daycare building is finished and the province is holding up the opening. "It is completed and ready for occupancy. We just need the province to finalize the payment to [the builder] to get it operational," said Greg Stevenson, who was the chair of the Peguis trust from July 2021 until early January 2025. Why Peguis trust owns the land Initially, the Peguis First Nation Real Estate Trust wanted to build a 2,000-home mixed-use development on the former Meadows golf course in East St. Paul, combining housing with commercial businesses. With guidance from Winnipeg developer Andrew Marquess, the trust purchased the former course for $12.3 million in 2021. The trust had been set up less than a month earlier. Former Peguis chief Glenn Hudson and the band council at the time appointed its initial five trustees, who were replaced by an entirely new board in January. The land purchase used $10 million from a $64-million settlement awarded to the band by the federal government in 2008, according to a statement of claim filed in an unrelated lawsuit. Extra money for the development came from a $5.5-million loan from a company owned by Maureen Diamond, Marquess's wife, after the trust could not obtain financing from a bank or credit union, according to court documents. The same court filing shows terms of the loan requiring monthly interest-only payments of $26,000 per month. But the Rural Municipality of East St. Paul didn't approve the housing project. It had suspended all new developments back in 2020 because of a lack of infrastructure. In March 2022, the municipal council voted down the trust's proposal due to the lack of sewer capacity, among other issues. Nine months later, the trust decided to proceed with the daycare project. During a two-year span, which includes when the daycare deal was being made, Winnipeg developer Marquess was being paid an average of $158,000 a month as a consultant for Peguis First Nation, according to a list of payments provided to CBC News by the band's current chief and council. 'Not a good deal': elder Peguis First Nation Real Estate Trust signed a deal with the province in November 2022 that required the trust to provide 15 years of free rent to a non-profit child-care provider, plus pay for snow-clearing, according to the funding agreement that CBC News obtained through a freedom-of-information request. Elder Bruce Sinclair, who is part of the group that opposed the re-election of Glenn Hudson in 2023, says he questions what Peguis members get out of this daycare deal. "It's not a good deal for Peguis," Sinclair said. "Why should we have to be paying and paying?" Family members pitch in to take care of his great-grandchildren, ages one and two, while his granddaughter works as a nurse at Percy E. Moore Hospital near Peguis. His great-grandchildren were on the waiting list for the existing 42-space on-reserve daycare until last month. According to its director, the daycare has 29 children waiting to get in, with a wait time of one to three years. The children were offered spots at the on-reserve daycare last month, but were forced to decline because the daycare only gave them a week lead time to start attending — something nearly impossible for the family, who have been living in Winnipeg since being forced out of their home during the 2017 flood. Sinclair is also upset that $10 million in Peguis land settlement money is tied up in the East St. Paul land. "That's not right. I don't know how they can say they're right in what they're doing." The East St. Paul daycare is one of 22 daycares that were project-managed by JohnQ Public Inc., a company owned by 12 rural municipalities. The price tag for the daycares was nearly $100 million, according to the province. Last month, the NDP government asked the province's auditor general to review all the JohnQ daycares. Deputy education minister Brian O'Leary said in an April 16 letter to the auditor general that the project "may not have followed normal provincial or municipal procurement practices," and asked for a review of that, as well as how child-care spaces were doled out, given none were in the city of Winnipeg. Auditor General Tyson Shtykalo said he is reviewing the request and has asked for more information before determining what action, if any, his office will take. The 22 JohnQ daycares were part of a larger effort by Manitoba's Progressive Conservatives to get 25 child-care centres built in the province. JohnQ and the trust awarded the contract for running the Peguis daycare in East St. Paul to Created 4 Me Early Learning Centre, a local non-profit, in October 2024. It already operates a 36-space facility in the area and has an existing list of 500 children who have been waiting up to three years for a spot. Kids on that waitlist will get spaces at the Peguis daycare when it opens. "This will allow for 74 more spaces in our community to open up, meeting that need," executive director Laura Van Landeghem said in an interview with CBC News. The daycare is still going through the licensing process. There's no set date for opening. Daycare will generate revenue: former trust chair The Peguis trust was tipped off in the summer of 2022 that the province had new funding for daycares. In a report to Peguis's current chief and council, obtained by CBC News, Marquess said his "contacts at the province" told him at that point they were moving forward with a daycare program. In an emailed statement sent to CBC via his lawyer, Marquess has since backtracked from this statement. He now says it was Colleen Sklar, JohnQ Public's chief executive officer, who informed him about the program to build daycares. Sklar did not respond to a request for comment. Stevenson, the former chair of the Peguis trust, corroborated Marquess's account. "Andrew [Marquess] then told us there was a possibility that [the trust] could get a daycare. We liked the idea and talked to chief and council, who also liked the idea," Stevenson told CBC News in an email. He said Peguis's former chief and council approved the project, even though the daycare would not be built in their community. "We understood from JQ Public that the daycare was for the East St. Paul area," Stevenson said. When asked how the daycare benefits Peguis members in light of its distance from the reserve, Stevenson said Peguis received a $5-million building "that cost nothing to build from the trust" and will generate rental revenue in 15 years, after the rent-free period for the child-care provider ends. Stevenson said the benefits to the community go beyond the daycare itself, because the goal of the trust is to develop land and return profits to Peguis. "Since we owned the land in [East St. Paul], it made sense to put a building there to start the process of our vision for that land," said Stevenson. He said the initial trustees took on the role because they believed that the trust could become "one of Manitoba's competitive developers" as it grew in knowledge and experience. The province said it dealt with the trust rather than the First Nation because former Peguis chief and council passed a resolution in favour of that arrangement in November 2022, according to a statement from an unnamed provincial spokesperson. Marquess says his involvement in the daycare project was limited to informing the trustees and former chief and council about the opportunity to obtain one of the proposed daycares, and providing advice to the trustees from time to time as the project progressed. "I also encouraged them to pursue the project because I believed it was a win-win for the trust, Peguis First Nation and the community of East St. Paul," Marquess said in an email from his lawyer. "I had no involvement in the construction of the daycare," Marquess said in the email. That was handled by JohnQ and the general contractor, he said. Builder says it's owed millions A Winnipeg company called Pretium Projects Ltd. won two tenders issued by JohnQ to build 22 nearly identical daycares. The structures were largely prebuilt and then assembled on site. Peguis's daycare started with a budget of just under $4 million. In August 2024, then education minister Nello Altomare approved a budget increase to $5.5 million. Pretium said it's still owed money by the Peguis trust for its work on the daycare. It has placed a $2.4-million builder's lien on the property. While the daycare occupies nearly a hectare, the lien is applied against most of the nearly 75-hectare parcel of land that was formerly the Meadows golf course. A lawyer for Pretium said the money owed is due to construction change orders communicated and authorized through the appropriate channels prior to the start of construction. "The Peguis [trust's] daycare was then constructed within budget," said Pretium's lawyer. The start of construction was delayed by the trust by 18 months, according to the lawyer. There were no construction-related delays and the daycare was delivered one month ahead of schedule, the lawyer said. There are differing accounts on how JohnQ and Pretium were selected for the Peguis project. Former trust chair Stevenson said JohnQ, Pretium and the province ran the project, not the Peguis trust — and the trust didn't choose JohnQ. The construction project "was already structured and operational prior to the trust having it awarded to us from the province," Stevenson said. Meanwhile, the province says all 22 of the communities with daycare construction projects run by JohnQ chose the company as project manager. An unnamed provincial spokesperson said the Peguis trust let the province know it selected JohnQ in August 2022. Province to blame: former trustee Stevenson also accused the province of holding up the certification, licensing and permits for the daycare. "The province quit funding the construction invoices at the end of project but never told [the trust] that they were withholding funding for the project," wrote Stevenson in an email to CBC News. Naline Rampersad, the spokesperson for Education Minister Schmidt, said the province "formally advised" Stevenson at the beginning of November that it was starting "a due diligence process." The lawyer for the newly elected board of trustees of the Peguis real estate trust, Sonny Cochrane, did not respond to requests for comment. John Gailus, the lawyer who represents Peguis First Nation and its members, said he has nothing to say because he hasn't been kept informed of the trust's activities.
