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Flooding prompts hospital evacuation in Attawapiskat

April 30, 2013, Attawapiskat, Ont. – Emergency officials say flooding and a sewer backup have forced the troubled First Nation of Attawapiskat to evacuate its hospital.

Emergency Management Ontario says the reserve on the shore of the James Bay has declared an emergency due to rapid snow melt that has affected sewer infrastructure and water treatment.

It says patients receiving long-term care have been moved to facilities outside the community as a precaution.

The isolated community of roughly 1,800 has a history of spring-time flooding, but is best known for the housing crisis that triggered a state of emergency in the winter of 2011.

Officials say flooding has also prompted an emergency in another James Bay community, Kashechewan First Nation, where roughly a third of the residents are affected by a sewer backup.

And the nearby Neshkantaga First Nation remains under a state of emergency following a string of suicides.