Black Tickle 'won't go down without a fight,' says community leader
It's been one blow after another for the isolated Labrador settlement
The pending closure of the only retail gas station in Black Tickle is once again raising questions about the future of the tiny and isolated coastal Labrador community.
But one local leader says his town is not ready to disappear off the map.
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"If Black Tickle goes down, it won't be without a fight," said Joe Keefe, a member of the Black Tickle Local Service District.
The Woodward Group of Companies announced this week that it will close its gas station in Black Tickle on Nov. 1 and remove the in-ground fuel tanks because they are nearing the end of their lifespan.
The company said the station is no longer viable, and that it has lost more than $100,000 in recent years.
That move will leave residents scrambling to fuel their vehicles, and in some cases, heat their homes.
String of setbacks
It's just the latest blow in a string of setbacks for Black Tickle, which has a population of less than 140.
The local seafood processing plant closed several years ago, eliminating about 70 seasonal jobs, and there have been ongoing struggles with the water supply.
There's no real municipal infrastructure in the community, and residents must transport water to their homes from a local treatment plant.
When the plant shut down temporarily last year, residents were forced to collect water from a nearby bog, raising public health questions.
The local all-grade school, meanwhile, is expected to have an enrolment of 19 students this fall.
But even with few employment prospects and gradually deteriorating living conditions, residents are not about to give up on their community, said Keefe.
He said local fishermen continue to harvest nearby waters, but now sell their catches to seafood processing plants in Cartwright and Charlottetown.
He added that some residents have started picking and selling berries, while others commute for work.
Not much interest in resettling
Several years ago, residents voted 73 per cent against a proposal to resettle the community, and Keefe doesn't expect that sentiment to change anytime soon.
"We hope to find a way around this one, too," he said.
Meanwhile, Labrador and Aboriginal Affairs Minister Keith Russell said the provincial government will work with the community to find a solution to the gasoline issue.
"When you're dealing with isolated communities it's very difficult and it's very hard to have suppliers be successful at times," Russell said.
"It's challenging. And government is always going to be there to work with everybody involved to make sure that we take care of those people," he said.
Labrador MP Yvonne Jones said the provincial government should provide financial assistance to anyone looking to establish a retail gas station in the community.
With files from Ramona Dearing