Children and youth in a Northern Manitoba First Nation have nowhere to attend classes after heavy snow caused the school’s roof to collapse on Easter weekend.
Thunderbird School in O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation at South Indian Lake, about 300 kilometres by road northwest of Thompson, is about 50 years old, according to Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which issued a press release about the collapse on the evening of April 10.
Engineers will be in the First Nation April 11 to assess the damage. It is currently unknown how long the building will remain unusable.
“The large amount of snowfall this winter caused the roof of our school to collapse,” said OPCN Chief Shirley Ducharme, who declared a state of emergency in her community March 6 after tragic deaths shook the First Nation. “The high winds lifted the sheet metal and left the roof bare which concerns us because with freezing rain forecasted for the area it could cause further damage to our school. We have been in need of repairs to our school for some time and this certainly doesn't help matters.”
234 students attend Thunderbird School. OPCN has an educational agreement with Frontier School Division, which is the employer of about 45 staff members.
MKO is assisting OPCN with its efforts to get a new school built.
“It seems when it rains it pours sometimes," said MKO Grand Chief Garrison Settee. "We have already set the wheels in motion to assist in getting the community a new school.”
