Nunavut housing shortage makes fire prevention critical: Fire chiefs
Fire Prevention Week wraps up Saturday
A recent fire in Rankin Inlet displaced a family of five, forcing them to move in with relatives. (File photo)
Fire prevention is a critical job, but in Nunavut, firefighters face extra complications due to the severe shortage of housing across the territory.
“Housing is often overcrowded, you’ve got mattresses that aren’t necessarily in bedrooms but on the floors, and that sort of thing,” said Rankin Inlet fire Chief Mark Wyatt.
“You know, a lot of clothes everywhere [because] you’ve got 10 or 15 people living in a house. So that becomes an added problem.”
Fire Prevention Week, which is observed across North America, started Oct. 8 and wraps up on Saturday.
Many fires are preventable. In Rankin Inlet, Wyatt said, a few recent fires were caused by people improperly disposing of their cigarette butts.
Iqaluit fire Chief Steve McGean echoed Wyatt’s concern over acts of carelessness that can lead to fires.
“I’ve been pushing for this year to get my staff to talk to the public about discarding smoking materials,” he said.
McGean also noted that in Nunavut, where many people have cabins and tents out on the land, fire safety around cooking stoves is a real concern.
“In the past, we have had cloth tents catch fire due to poor use,” he said, adding his crews ask people to do “their due diligence when using camp stoves in those type of structures.”
In the south, when people are displaced from their homes due to fires, hotel rooms or temporary housing is readily available. In Nunavut, there isn’t always a simple solution.
“It’s very difficult when people’s homes burn here,” Wyatt said.
Most people in Rankin Inlet live in community housing and there isn’t much of a surplus, he said. When a person or family is burned out of their home, there aren’t many options for getting a roof over their heads.
“Often when people lose their house to a fire, they’re stuck trying to find a place to live either with relatives or friends,” said Wyatt.
“I’ve seen people displaced in a house fire and struggling to find a new place to live for over a year before a place becomes available.”
Wyatt said he has seen some people forced to move to Winnipeg, because the cost of living is so high in the hamlet.
He said he isn’t blaming the local housing authorities, “it’s just that we have a huge housing shortage right now.”
The Government of Nunavut announced last year a plan to build 3,000 homes across the territory by 2030 in a $2.6-billion partnership with the private sector and Inuit organizations dubbed Nunavut 3000.
Homes are being built, but in the meantime the shortage of housing persists.
Wyatt said the GN’s victims’ services program is a good resource for people who have lost their home to fire. McGean said the Canadian Red Cross is one of the first institutions he reaches out to.
Still, options are limited — especially in cases like the fire last month at a multi-unit complex in Iqaluit that affected six families at once.
“Right now, when people lose their homes due to fire, it’s a real problem,” Wyatt said.
Fire Prevention should be critical and at the fore front of the Fire Marshalls Office all the time, not only the fact we have a housing shortage but because it cost so much more to build in Nunavut than anywhere else in Canada.
Where is the prevention? Housing Authorities are not making sure their units have working fire extinguishers, or working smoke detectors. Local Fire Department are not teaching the younger generations what kind of fire extinguishers there are… ABC. they are not teaching them how to use them either anymore.
Every household should have fire evacuation plan in the event their home catches on fire. Every household member should know where the fire extinguishers are and how to use them.
This is not new folks….it is just getting left on the shelves because of government red tape.
Rankin housing shortage or is it a controlled intentional housing shortage?
Been told there’s a short street in Rankin with 3 empty houses, like many other streets in town.
One house has remained unoccupied with the furnace heating house and electrical power on for over 3 years.
The 2 other houses, same street, have remained vacant for maybe 6 months or more. Though the fuel tanks have been red taped off for no fuel to be delivered to them. Told no maintenance or upkeep done to either of the empty houses.
Then, if no fuel delivered to heat the house. Is it intentional to create a damp, moldy house rapidly as possible?
Guess housing can boast they solved the mold problem. Have no tenants but carry on stuffing bodies into other houses. While collecting rent from every working person in a cramped up house?
Has anyone seen an MLA in Rankin holding a public meeting about housing shortages and the empty houses? Does Rankin even have Nunavut MLA’s, MP who work for the people?
Though one thing for sure. The same, decades old news shocker sound bite “10-15 people in a house”, keeps on popping up, as if on cue. To keep all accepting intentional incompetence as new housing normal.
Condo for sale on Plateau in Iqaluit.
Two bed, 2 bath, semi-detached, in need of updating, and I would have to kick out tenants if I want to live in it.
$799,000.00.
A 20% down payment would be exactly twice the total price of the house I grew up in and even with that $159,000 DOWNPAYMENT our monthly payment would be $4600.
FOR A CONDOMINIUM ON RENTED LAND
The 6 plex that burnt is not the only multiplex that has burnt in Nunavut. this is a very good reason we should not be building so many of them. Lets get back to single family homes, or just duplexes. getting longer and longer row housing increases the chances of loosing a lot in one shot.
I agree with you on a personal basis, but it’s simply not feasible to not allow density, single family homes put a strain on resourced whereas multiplexes are the opposite. But if you can afford a single family home, you ought to pay for it.
Well the house in the photo was not insured… so that is just a house that is gone and will not be replaced. that should be part of the conversation as well. Way to many private houses are not insured. Perhaps this is something the Govt could help home owners out with… because if a house does burn down and they are not insured who will end up supporting that family after that anyway… the GOV.
We almost had a fire at the 33 Plex in Rankin few weeks ago. Drunk idiot trying to cook in the middle of the night must have passed out or something, imagine losing 33 apartments.
It would be interesting and potentially useful to know what percentage of fires were started by drunk people. I hear of this happening all the time. I would not be surprised to learn that a majority of incidents involve drunk idiots.