Fort Simpson, N.W.T. residents watching river as 700 already evacuated

A mayor in the Northwest Territories was watching for movement in slabs of ice and snow sitting on top of one of two rivers threatening his community on Tuesday.

About 700 of Fort Simpson's 1,200 residents were forced from their homes after water levels rose dangerously on the weekend.

“On Fort Simpson island itself, probably 30 to 40 per cent of the island is underwater,” Mayor Sean Whelly said in an interview.

He said a mandatory evacuation order was issued Sunday, but about 50 residents remained in the village.

Whelly said it's hard to assess how much damage has been done to homes.

“We're not even sure what we're looking at here yet. I know personally that people have suffered some losses.”

The mayor said water levels had dropped slightly on Tuesday, but the change might not last long.

“It looks like it's coming back up again. I'm looking out down one of the side streets on the island and the water's part way down the street here.”

The village sits at the intersection of the Mackenzie and Liard rivers, but the flooding has mostly been caused by breakup on the Liard. Ice on the Mackenzie was holding tight.

“We're just hoping the Mackenzie doesn't let loose,” Whelly said.

“The two rivers combined together could give us a lot more problems than we're having right now.”

“Every hour that we gain here while this ice pack has a chance to move is beneficial to us.”

Whelly said some people were flown to Fort Smith, N.W.T. — almost 700 kilometres away — where they were staying at the town's recreation centre. Others were camping or staying with friends and family.

“Fort Smith really stepped up to take care of our evacuees,” Whelly said.

Some of the evacuation measures are precautionary, he said.

“If we do it while they're safe and we know where everybody is, then we wait to see what happens. You wouldn't want to be sleeping down here at night wondering if the Mackenzie River is going to break loose.

“If the ice were to come across and swamp the town somehow, we'd be struggling to get people off this island.”