When 17-year-old Janie Inishinapay was forced to evacuate from her northern Ontario home in Kashechewan last week because of flooding, her first priority was ensuring the safety of her infant son, Rysen, who has cerebral palsy.
While many members of the First Nations community have experienced similar evacuations in previous years, this is the first time for five-month-old Rysen. The evacuation has been especially difficult for the young family because Rysen relies on a feeding tube in his stomach as he is not yet able to swallow any food.
Rysen and his parents are among approximately 1,500 Kasheschewan residents who have been evacuated -- nearly 500 are being temporarily sheltered in Cornwall. Others have been brought to communities includingThunder Bay, Greenstone and Kapuskasing for shelter. Over the weekend, the Red Cross also assisted approximately 1,000 people from Attawapiskat also evacuated due to flooding.
More than 200 Canadian Red Cross volunteer disaster responders have been deployed to assist those who have had to leave their homes and support municipal and provincial relief efforts.
Volunteers are also working to ensure the basic needs of those evacuated are being met by providing personal supplies, particularly items for babies, such as diapers, formula and baby food. Working with a nurse on-site in Cornwall, Red Crossers are helping to ensure evacuees are able to get the health care they need by picking up medicines at the pharmacy or making travel arrangements to hospitals or clinic.
Many of the evacuees had medical appointments disrupted by the flooding, including young Rysen who had plans to go to the hospital prior to the evacuation to have his feeding tube changed. The Red Cross helped Janie make arrangements to be transported to a nearby hospital where they will stay for two weeks while Rysen is treated.
Canadian Red Cross will continue its efforts to support the community until they are able to return home.