The government of Newfoundland and Labrador is relaxing its relocation assistance requirements for residents of Mud Lake who want to move over fears of future flooding. The central Labrador community was hit hard in 2017 when flooding of the Churchill River destroyed properties and forced people from their homes. Some blamed the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project for the flood — a class-action suit making its way through the court system is seeking damages from Crown corporation Nalcor Energy — but an independent report in 2017 determined natural causes were likely to blame, concluding that ice blocked the river's mouth, forcing water over the banks.