Sheryl Yakeleya

Mr. Chair, I move that the chair rise and report progress. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister explain if ECC has in place any sort of early warning detection system for natural disasters to help protect communities in an answer safety to disasters? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Environment and Climate Change explain why the GNWT failed to contact the community of Enterprise on August 13th to inform them of an impending wildfire that was being pushed towards them very quickly due to high winds? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as you know all the communities in my riding were hardest hit from the wildfires last summer. Deh Cho region residents, like other South Slave communities, fled on a moment's notice as the fires burned out of control towards our communities. Mr. Speaker, K'atlodeeche First Nations was evacuated twice during the summer of 2023 for a total of 61 days. That community lost 18 homes, their band office, and Dene Cultural Institute was burned. Enterprise was completely devastated losing roughly 90 percent of their entire community with only about eight houses left...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

WHEREAS Tabled Document 2720(1) is a petition signed by 1,077 people, including 396 residents of the Northwest Territories;

AND WHEREAS Tabled Document 2720(1) does not strictly conform with our rules to be submitted as a petition; and

THEREFORE I MOVE, second by the Member for Yellowknife North, that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide a response to Tabled Document 2720(1) and table it in this House within 120 days.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I MOVE, second by the Member for Great Slave, to amend Motion 920(1), Establishing a Public Inquiry into the 2023 Wildfires as amended, by replacing the words "the inquiry establishment order" with "a draft inquiry establishment order" in the last clause of the motion such as it reads:

AND FURTHERMORE, that a draft inquiry establishment order be tabled on the first day of the May sitting of this House.

Thank You, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I know that fire lookout towers were widely used tool to combat wildfires in the past. Can the Minister tell us if fire lookout towers are still being used by ECC across the NWT, and are they still considered an effective tool to use against wildfires? Thank you.

Thank you, and thank you to the Member for that the Minister. Mr. Speaker, I understand that this ECC Minister was not Minister on August 13th last year, but can the Minister explain if the department was aware of the level of risk that Enterprise was in that day when they were forced to evacuate the community? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to my colleagues. Mr. Speaker, my constituents are understandably feeling angry, hurt, and abandoned by our government as a result of the wildfires and its after math. I will have questions for the Minister of ECC later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recorded vote, please.