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Sahtu Secretariat chair frozen out of meeting

John Curran
Northern News Services

Fort Good Hope (Nov 29/04) - The annual general meeting of the Sahtu Secretariat in Fort Good Hope had to carry on from Nov. 16-26 without its leader.

Eddy McPherson Jr., Secretariat chairman and part owner of Red Dog Mtn Contracting of Tulita, was trapped in the bush at the Northrock Resources camp about 80 km south of Tulita.

"We've been trying to get him for a week, but the chopper keeps icing up," said Gary Yakeleya, McPherson's business partner.

"One day we tried three times -- we really wanted to get him to the meetings in Good Hope."

Red Dog was building ice roads for Northrock when the weather changed for the worse.

"It's been -14C with wet snow," said Yakeleya, Thursday. "We're going to try again today to get in there."

The Keele River camp is practically at sea level so when the weather is bad, there's no flying under it, said Rob Carroll, a vice-president with the Great Slave Group of Companies -- operating partner of Sahtu Helicopters which has attempted several unsuccessful trips into the site.

"You could lose lift," he said. "If the ice sheds unevenly it could get into your tail rotor."

Since a fatal crash in Ontario more than a decade ago, Carroll said Transport Canada made it illegal to fly in freezing conditions. He added he's worked with McPherson since 1999 and he's certain missing the annual meeting would have been the last thing he wanted to do.

"Eddy McPherson Jr. has always been very proactive in dealing with the needs of the people and communities of the Sahtu," he said.

"It's better to be on the ground wishing you were flying than to be flying wishing you were on the ground."

A spokesperson at the K'asho Got'ine Dene band office said Deline's Michael Neyelle filled in as acting chair.

"It's been a good time with lots of people visiting here," she said.

"On Wednesday night we had hand games, a drum dance and then a fiddle dance."