Trust fund will help those left homeless by Iqaluit fire

SEAN MCKIBBON
Nunatsiaq News

IQALUIT — A trust fund may be set up to help the victims of last week’s fire in an Iqaluit social housing complex.

Lee Smith, the program manager at Iqaluit’s Sailivik centre, said a trust fund with a board of directors will likely be set up to manage donations of money that have been raised at Nakasuk School for the fire victims.

“We haven’t counted it up yet, there’s a lot of small change, it’s certainly not in the thousands, but it might be in the hundreds, a hundred or so,” said Nakasuk’s principal Peter Hough. He said his students had donated small amounts, and that parents and teachers had been selling baked goods to raise money for the fire victims.

Hough said he will meet with Smith and other interested people to boost donations and get the trust organized.

He said one of the main things he wanted to accomplish was to try and open a bank account for donations. “Hopefully people will be able to use it again if any similar disasters happen in the future.”

Smith says Iqaluit’s Catholic Mission and Sailivik have been receiving donations of bedding and clothing and will continue to do so. Hough says people who wish to donate money can continue to do so through the school.

Accommodating homeless uphill battle

Susan Spring, the manager of Iqaluit’s housing authority, says one of the families who were burned out has already moved into a house in Apex, but that a second family is still waiting at the women’s shelter for new accommodations.

“It’s an uphill battle,” said Spring.

Three other Iqaluit families will have to switch houses in order to make room for the fire victims. The single people left homeless by the blaze may have to wait as long as a month before spare bachelor accommodations can be renovated to a satisfactory condition.

“Some of the units are very badly battered,” said Spring.

Housing minister Jack Anawak says the building was insured, and that his ministry’s budget will not be affected by the loss, estimated at about $1.6 million.

However this incident in Iqaluit and the headaches it has created is a symptom of a much larger problem in the territory.

“Out of the 26,000 people in the territory, we’re 2000 units short,” said Anawak. He said he will be asking the federal government for more money for social housing.

Spring says a tender to demolish the building should go out this week. In it’s current state the gutted house presents a danger to children who might be tempted to play inside it.