More workers, heaters headed to Manitoba First Nation struggling with frozen water

PIMICIKAMAK CREE NATION, MAN. – More workers and heaters and are on the way to a beleaguered First Nation in northern Manitoba, where thousands have been forced out due to frozen pipes and sewage backup. 

A day after politicians travelled to Pimicikamak Cree Nation to witness the devastation caused by a frozen water catastrophe, the community announced additional heaters are expected to arrive early next week and 30 more tradespeople are to follow suit.

“We have plumbers, we have electricians and we also have carpenters that are being brought in,” Chief David Monias said in a Facebook video on Thursday.

“We just don’t have enough people that are doing all this work.”

Monias has repeatedly called for extra tradespeople to help assess and repair homes in the First Nation, a community of 7,000 people located 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

Officials are still determining the extent of damage to the more than 1,300 homes in Pimicikamak, nearly two weeks after a power outage led to the failure of critical infrastructure. 

On Dec. 28, a 300-metre-long power line running between two islands in the Nelson River broke. Manitoba Hydro fully restored power to the community days later, but the power went out during a bitterly cold run of weather and, when residents returned, they found ruptured pipes.

At least 4,000 people were sent to other communities, including Winnipeg and Thompson.

The main issue plumbers are working on is getting water flowing back into homes and other buildings. 

“We’re hoping to just expedite this tenfold just to get everything going,” said Todd McConnell, a plumber brought in to help the First Nation.

“Right now a lot of the holding tanks are frozen still. We just don’t have enough heaters and we’re going house by house. Everyone’s working 12, 16 hours even just trying get everything online.”

Once the holding tanks are thawed, the water lines have to be tested, McConnell added. 

Crews have been able to survey hundreds of homes. In almost every home that has been compromised, the toilets have frozen and sink taps have burst. 

Federal, provincial and First Nations leaders toured the community Wednesday and saw flooded homes with buckled ceilings and cracked pipes.

One home’s crawl space half-filled with water before plumbers were able to shut off water valves. In another residence, the basement’s ceiling collapsed from the weight of water. Piles of drywall littered the floor. 

Monias has been calling for help from the Armed Forces – a request that has gone unheeded. 

The federal government committed to helping with restoration, while Premier Wab Kinew has asked Crown-owned Manitoba Hydro to review its response to the power outage and consider moving the community’s power line.

It has been a challenging year for the First Nation. Several thousand were forced out of the community due to wildfires last spring.

Members have been voicing their urge to leave unfamiliar cities and return home. 

No timeline has been given, but Monias said he hopes to bring back families in small batches as their homes get fixed. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 8, 2026. 

— By Brittany Hobson in Winnipeg