The Atikamekw of Manawan are demanding their own system of ambulance

QMI agency

Monday, march 19, 2018 22:35

UPDATE
Monday, 19 march 2018 22:37

Look at this article

MONTRÉAL | Les Atikamekw de Manawan have claimed, on Monday, the creation of an ambulance service full and standing in the aboriginal community of Lanaudière, which is a little less than a hundred kilometres to the north of Saint-Michel-des-Saints.

The Atikamekw have made this request before the Commission of inquiry on the relations between the Native peoples and some public services in Québec at a hearing held in Montréal. According to them, the lack of a service to ems in their community represents a case of “discrimination” and “systemic racism” by the authorities and the québec government.

In support of this application, Jeffrey Niquay has delivered a troubling testimony in telling the story of the drowning of her little two year old daughter, Jayla, who had sunk in a lake community.

“I started the manoeuvres and all that, but there was nobody around me. There was water that came out of Jayla and her eyes were open,” remembered Mr. Niquay.

The ambulance nearest to Manawan is located in Saint-Michel-des-Saints. The ambulance may take between 1 h to 1 h 30 to reach Manawan, via the gravel road that separates the municipality from the reserve. “It is this time that we is fatal”, said the head of the Council of the Atikamekw of Manawan, Jean-Roch Ottawa.

In the case of small-Jayla, the ambulance departed Saint-Michel-des-Saints at 10: 49 am to arrive at 11: 52. The paramedics administered cpr, before leaving with the child to 12 pm 8 to arrive at the CLSC de Saint-Michel-des-Saints to 13 h 6. It took 2 hours and 17 minutes for the ambulance to make the round trip.

The girl was then transferred to Joliette, and then at the hôpital Saint-Justine in Montreal, where she arrived more than 6 hours after his drowning. Despite the doctors ‘ efforts, it has not survived.

– According to a report by Jonathan Roberge