NNSL (JAN 06/97) - Residents of Clyde River are in shock after a local carver was shot and killed early New Year's Day.

Juda Natanine, 32 and the father of two children, was shot once before he died at a community residence.

Another man in the small Baffin Island community of 700 is charged with the first-degree murder of Natanine.

One local woman who has lived in the community for nearly 15 years, but asked not to be named, said that the town is devastated by the killing.

"This is a double tragedy," she said. "This involves two people and two families."

The whole community is saddened by what has happened, she added.

An innovative carver who used granite in his work, Natanine will be missed by the both the people of Clyde River and the Northern art community.

He's also known by his Clyde River neighbors for building an unusual machine three years ago -- an all-terrain vehicle that was half snowmachine and half three-wheeler.

This isn't the first time tragedy has hit Natanine's family.

The local woman remembers Natanine's uncle getting shot and killed under similar circumstances about 20 years ago.

"The mood here is of great sadness," she said of this latest killing.

Jo MacQuarrie, chief coroner for the NWT, said that the body of Natanine will be transported from Clyde River to Toronto for an autopsy when the weather conditions improve in the Baffin.

The RCMP said Friday they were hoping to get a plane into the community over the weekend.

The man accused of murder is scheduled to appear in Iqaluit territorial court on Tuesday.