Truck Through Ice Cuts Off Athabasca Road Access

Monday, April 25, 2005 at 15:33

The chief of the Hatchet Lake First Nation had a close call yesterday.

Louis Josie was driving a truck that went through the ice on Collins Bay sometime late yesterday afternoon.

Josie and and the vehicle’s other occupant escaped unharmed before the truck sank.

However, since the incident took place on the main route from the south to the communities in the Athabasca basin, all road traffic to the region has been abruptly halted.

Hatchet Lake band councillor Ed Benoanie says many local residents who had been travelling down south felt they could safely use the ice road for at least another week, but now find their vehicles stranded on the wrong side of the lake.

Benoanie says the owners of the stranded vehicles won’t be able to bring their vehicles back to their home communities until barge service begins two months from now.