The Nishnawbe Aski Police Service (NAPS) is currently investigating a house fire that took place early in the morning in Kasabonika Lake First Nation last Saturday. According to NAPS, they were alerted about the fire at approximately 6:30 a.m. on that day in the secluded Oji-Cree community, situated around 450 kilometers northeast of Sioux Lookout along the Asheweig River in northwestern Ontario.
Although no injuries have been reported, the residence located on Nursing Station Road in the 200 block is deemed a total loss, as stated by NAPS in a press release issued on Saturday morning. A NAPS spokesperson mentioned in an email to CBC News on Sunday that the structure affected was a four-unit building, leading to the displacement of about 10 individuals.
NAPS did not disclose the specific assistance provided to the affected individuals. Kasabonika Lake is home to fewer than 1,200 residents and is a member of the Shibogama First Nations Council as well as the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, under Treaty 9. Last summer, a fire incident destroyed a church in the same community.