'It's a sad day for the community': Fire destroys school on Waterhen Lake First Nation

Waterhen Lake First Nation in northwestern Saskatchewan is now without a school after a fire on Tuesday.

The Meadow Lake fire department received a call for assistance from the First Nation shortly after 1 p.m., according to fire Chief Joe Grela. He said firefighters arrived about an hour later to find the Waweyekisik Education Centre up in flames.

Waterhen Lake First Nation is about 75 kilometres north of Meadow Lake.

"We set up on the section of the school that actually was on fire at the time.We weren't able to control it," Grela said on Wednesday.

Grela said the school was evacuated prior to the fire department's arrival and no injuries were reported.

The fire started in the roof of the school's industrial arts shop, according to a Waweyekisik Education Centre Facebook post.

"It's a sad day for the community,"the Facebook post reads.

WATCH |Witness describes fire that destroyed school on Waterhen Lake First Nation:

Fire destroys school that was 'heart' of First Nation in northern Sask.

5 months ago

Duration 1:19

A witness describes the fire that destroyed the school at Waterhen Lake First Nation in northwestern Saskatchewan. People say the Waweyekisik Education Centre was a community hub.

Dustin Ross Fiddler grew up in Waterhen Lake First Nation and was a former band councillor. He said the school was integral to the community.

"It's where I made my first friends.I remember spending my early years there, kindergarten and pre-k, graduating there as well.Then when I was in leadership, I was there for countless number of grads and countless number of funerals as well to support families," Fiddler said

"Allthose memories come back at once.I think that's what what has people in shock when they look at it, that it's not there anymore.It's just a pile of rubble that's smoking."

Former student recalls school's impact on her life

Natasha Aubichon no longer lives in the community, but graduated from the school in 2012.

Aubichon thought her teenage son was joking when he messaged her with the news of the fire. But then she contacted her mother who works at the school and was watching it burn.

"That school just holds a lot of memories close to my heart and close to everybody's hearts," she said through tears in an interview with CBC News. "We've had a lot of firsts in that school. Lots of first best friends, first sweethearts, first dances."

Aubichon said the school changed her life because the teachers encouraged her to return to classes when she was a young mom. Now, she owns her own hair studio.

She said she cried when she heard the news.

"I have a lot of memories with friends that have passed on. And every time I think of my friends, they're memories of being in that school," she said. "So to know that the school is actually gone, it just feels like the memories are gone, like they're gone with it, like we can't walk the hallways again."

Loss of school was preventable: Waterhen Lake Chief

Waterhen Lake First NationChief Blaine Fiddler said "the devastating loss" of the school was preventable. He added the community had seen danger coming for more thana decade.

"We communicated that there was a pressing need for necessary upgrades and replacements in building materials to best meet contemporary safety standards," Fiddler said in a letter posted on Facebook.

"Waterhenleadership past and present lobbied through multiple governments to advocate our need for a new school to no avail. This is unacceptable."

Fiddler said it is unbelievable that theschool, where the community came togetherrecently tocongratulatethe 2024 graduating class, is now gone.

"I know that many of you hold your own cherished memories of Waweyekisk because in many ways it was the heart of our community," Fiddler said. "However, what is not lost is the strength of our community and all the people who make Waterhen our home."

Fiddler said the theme for the 2024 graduating class ishkamyimo, which translates to"We will persevere."

"I cannot think of anything more fitting to reflect upon as we move forward with rebuilding such an integral part of the community," Fiddler said.

Fiddler said he has contacted Indigenous Services Canada to inform them Waterhen Lake First Nation needs their immediate support in the aftermath of the fire and to build a new school. He added the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations and Meadow Lake Tribal Councilhavereached out to help.

Damages could be millions of dollars: fire chief

Grela said while the Waweyekisik Education Centre was completely destroyed in the fire, the fire department was able to prevent further damage to the community.

"The school is a total loss, [but] we were able to make another fire break between the school and band office, so we were able to save the band office," Grela said.

Grela added Waterhen Lake First Nation is not typically in the fire department's response area but even if they were closer, it wouldn't have made much of a difference in saving the school.

"Due to the building construction and how the fire spread, it would have been difficult really for any fire department to actually do any effective fire control," Grela said.

"It was an older school. There was an existing roof and then another roof was placed over top of that roof, so the fire got into the void spaces between the two roofs. When that happens, it's a very difficult place to gain access to and to try and control [the fire]."

Grela estimates the damages from the school fire will be in the millions of dollars.

He said the cause of the fire is currently unknown, but expects a provincial fire investigator to be at the scene on Wednesday.