A Habitat for Humanity volunteer is sharing a sobering message about the living conditions at a First Nation community in northwestern Ontario, which he found "hard to believe".
Kevin Selles spoke about his time volunteering at Eabametoong First Nation, also known as Fort Hope, which is located just north of Thunder Bay.
Selles said the purpose of the trip in December 2023 was to address the electrical needs in reserve houses.
"There's a huge fire issue in that area because of electrical problems... as well as others," he said.
Selles later clarified that the area does have an issue with arson. The community's only school burned down a few weeks ago.
"It's pretty heartbreaking because the efforts to make things better always seem to revert backward for whatever reason," he said.
As someone who had never heard of Eabametoong First Nation before, Selles said he was shocked by a number of things. For one, they had to fly in from Thunder Bay.
He said they visited several homes that had obvious safety concerns, including missing electrical panel covers or the inappropriate use of extension cords. Selles also referenced one homeowner who had been without power for over a year.
"When we [went] into a house, we checked all of the outlets to see which ones were loose, which ones were not working and then we started changing them out," he said. "A lot of the electrical stuff was bought at a cheaper rate through electrical suppliers. We changed 300 receptacles, I think, on around 20 houses."
Smoke detectors and fire extinguishers were also placed in each house they worked on.
Since most residences housed several people, Selles said they often had to focus on the task at hand and not allow themselves to be distracted by the living conditions.
"In each house, it's not just one family. We're talking [about] two to three families... grandparents, and babies all in one house," he said.
In each home, he said there were also "in memory of" dedications as several young people had taken their own lives.
Among the housing challenges, or the lack thereof, Selles said malnutrition and the cost of food were also major issues.
"There's our eggs (referencing a picture) they're $7 a dozen, and our milk is $10.95 or $5.25 for a carton," he said. "Everything is flown in … so somebody has to pick up the cost."
Selles was the guest speaker at Tuesday's Kiwanis Club of Sarnia-Lambton Golden K meeting.
When asked what could be done, Selles was unsure. He said there were so many complex issues and only throwing money at it is not going to solve everything.