The Southern Chiefs\u2019 Organization (SCO) is calling for immediate government action as Peguis First Nation faces a high risk of flooding again this spring.<\/p>\n
In a Wednesday press release, the SCO says Manitoba\u2019s Hydrologic Forecast Centre has confirmed elevated flood risk in the Interlake region, particularly in the Fisher River basin.<\/p>\n
Grand Chief Jerry Daniels is urging the federal government to release emergency preparedness funding before floodwaters peak.<\/p>\n
“The people of Peguis deserve to feel safe as they live, work, and age in their home Nation,” Daniels said.<\/p>\n
Related Stories:<\/p>\n
High-risk conditions developing<\/p>\n
The province\u2019s latest outlook points to above-normal snowpack, delayed melting, and the potential for rapid runoff.<\/p>\n
Snow water levels in the Fisher River basin are among the highest in recent years and could reach about 110 millimetres, nearly double the long-term average. Under unfavourable conditions, flows could approach levels seen during the 2022 flood.<\/p>\n
That year, more than 2,100 residents were displaced, over 700 homes were damaged, and losses reached about $300 million.<\/p>\n
The SCO says hundreds of residents still cannot return home.<\/p>\n
Calls for emergency declaration<\/p>\n
Daniels is also calling on the Province of Manitoba to declare a state of emergency, allowing for Canadian Armed Forces support.<\/p>\n
The SCO says Peguis First Nation continues to face repeated flooding due to its location on low-lying land, where the community was forcibly relocated more than a century ago.<\/p>\n
“Flooding here is not a natural disaster. It is a policy failure,” the organization stated.<\/p>\n
The release says there needs to be both immediate action and long-term solutions.<\/p>\n
Peguis First Nation has faced severe flooding over the past two decades, including as recently as 2024.<\/p>\n
Officials warn a delayed melt could lead to a sudden surge once temperatures rise.<\/p>\n
The SCO says without swift intervention, Peguis First Nation could again face widespread evacuations and damage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Southern Chiefs\u2019 Organization (SCO) is calling for immediate government action as Peguis First Nation faces a high…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":592316,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194296],"tags":[49,48,22073],"class_list":["post-592315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592315"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592315\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/592316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592315"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592315"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}