Fort Albany joins Kashechewan in evacuation ahead of spring flooding in Ontario's far north

A second fly-in Cree community on Ontario's James Bay Coast is now being evacuated with the rising risk of spring flooding.

Fort Albany First Nation announced that the first 200 people are expected to be airlifted to Cochrane on Wednesday.

"It hasn't been that high in so many years," Chief Elizabeth Kataquapit said in an interview with CBC News.

"The first night there, I couldn't really sleep well because I was so worried about our community."

She said the rising waters from the Albany River have "almost overflowed" the causeway that connects different parts of the First Nation of 1,200 people. 

"We can't go across, we can't even go to the hospital," said Kataquapit, adding that helicopters are being used right now to get around the "unique" community, that is split up on different islands and between different channels of the river.

She said a fire truck is ready to sound the alarm if the water raises up overnight and the council is looking at airlifting more people out, possibly to Barrie.

Fort Albany last evacuated due to flooding risk in 2023, the same year the community had another evacuation because of a nearby wildfire.

Back then, people were taken to hotels in Niagara Falls, but Kataquapit said there is currently concern about a potential measles outbreak in that area. 

"Please stay safe, stay vigilant, and take all the necessary precautions. Keep a close watch on your children. Take care of each other," reads a statement from Fort Albany chief and council.

The nearby Kashechewan First Nation began its annual precautionary evacuation a few weeks ago, but is now moving to a full scale evacuation.

Joe Sayers— the acting CEO of ISN-Makwa, the Indigenous agency handling the Kashechewan emergency— said there are about 500 people out at their camps on the land, 750 who have been airlifted to communities in the south and now 800 more who will be flying out in the coming days. 

Kashechewan Chief Hosea Wesley said by the end of the day Wednesday, a total of 1,000 people will have been flown out, which is about half of the on-reserve population. 

He said there is a large ice jam in the Albany River, forcing water toward the two communities. 

There have long been plans to relocate Kashechewan, with the federal government promising to build a new community at a spot 30 kilometres to the south known as "Site 5" by 2029.

Kashechewan leadership has said in recent years that those plans have been complicated by Fort Albany wanting to be included in the talks.

The two First Nations were once one community, before separating and moving to opposite sides of the Albany River in the 1950s. But for the federal government, they still share the same reserve lands.

Kataquapit said a spring like this illustrates why Fort Albany also needs to move to a safer location, but said those plans are in the very early stages. 

"We do need to relocate because of the way our community is set up," she said. 

"We're not there yet. We're just thinking about it."