Amid year-long state of emergency, Neskantaga First Nation calls for health-care intervention – CBC

Apr 23, 2026

First Nation in northwestern Ontario has also been under 31-year boil-water advisory

Lashaunda Waswa, Neskantaga First Nation’s youngest band councillor at 22, is advocating for a better future for the next generation.

The remote Ojibway community in northwestern Ontario has been under a boil-water advisory for 31 years, the longest in effect in Canada. Community members also say health-care access is an ongoing challenge in the First Nation and urban centres like Thunder Bay, where people often travel for care they can’t get at home.

Neskantaga’s only nursing station flooded last year, prompting a two-month evacuation of the community’s most vulnerable members and the state of emergency.

Read More: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/neskantaga-first-nation-health-care-crisis-9.7173688