Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

RANKIN INLET (Aug 16/99) - Yet another fatality on the land has rocked the Kivalliq Region.

A 64-year-old Chesterfield Inlet woman was found dead in the water near Baker-Fore Land Island on Hudson Bay, about 65 kilometres northeast of Rankin Inlet, this past Wednesday, Aug. 11.

Emily Issaluk was camping on the island with a group of 10 other people when she decided to go for a walk alone at about 7 a.m. When Issaluk didn't return to the camp later in the day, group members searched the land and surrounding waters unsuccessfully for the woman.

Shawn Maley of the Department of Community Government and Transportation said a radio call came into search and rescue at Rankin Inlet at about 1:30 p.m. notifying SAR members of the woman's disappearance.

"The situation struck us right away as being a strange occurrence because it isn't a very large island," said Maley. "The people out on the island did a ground search and the surrounding waters and couldn't find her, which, again, was rather strange, so they called us.

"Originally, we didn't know if we were looking at another polar bear attack or what, so we sent a wildlife officer from RWED and two search-and-rescue volunteers via a Meliadine helicopter."

Maley said he was in constant contact with Rankin Inlet's Paul Kanayuk, who was at the scene with his own boat.

Kanayuk was relaying messages back and forth between the Rankin department and the group of family and friends searching for Issaluk. While the helicopter was on route, searchers at the

island put the SAR members on hold and then informed them they had discovered Issaluk's body.

The matter was immediately turned over to members of the Rankin Inlet detachment of the RCMP who went out and recovered the body. Sgt. Mark Hennigar said the searchers found Issaluk's body about 150 metres off-shore.

"It is presumed Issaluk drowned, but an autopsy has been ordered by the coroner to determine the cause of death," said Hennigar.

"We won't be releasing any more information until after the coroner has completed the autopsy and determined the cause of death."

Issaluk's death was the latest land-related tragedy to befall the Kivalliq and sixth fatality in what Maley calls an abnormal and tragic year.

"If you look at a snapshot from this past September until now, it's been absolutely brutal, maybe not so much search and rescue specifically, but emergency response," said Maley.

"I'd say triple the incidents we normally have, especially with fatalities. It was an exceptionally bad winter and now this second death during the summer.

"When you look back on it, we had some strange weather this past year and that may have combined with a little bit of complacency.

However, more than anything else, I think every now and then a region will have a very bad year statistically and we're having one now."