Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Gaudet said homes on the west side of the settlement, near Highway 35, remain at the highest risk because floodwater is taking longer to drain from the area. The settlement said it's looking for the provincial and federal government's help in assessing and repairing the damage. He added the flood has been very traumatizing because it reminds community members of a fire that burned down half the settlement and forced evacuations in 2019.
Residents in the northern Alberta community of Chateh, west of High Level, could be out of their homes for several months after flooding forced them to flee on Sunday and Monday. Some 1,100 people left the community on the Dene Tha' First Nation as water in the Sousa Creeks, basin and surrounding waterways continued to rise in the previous few days. Chateh is about 850 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.
