INUVIK - When the Mackenzie River ice broke up last week, water levels rose to their highest in 40 years, causing one family to call for help.

When the Mackenzie River broke on May 27 and 28, 11 people including five children had to be evacuated from a cabin out at Horseshoe Bend, including, from front to back, Wade Maring, James Maring Sr, Curtis Hendrick and James Maring Jr. - Samantha Stokell/NNSL photo

The river broke on the night of May 26 and by the afternoon of May 27 the Maring family needed to evacuate their home out at Horseshoe Bend, about 20 km from Aklavik.

"It was flooding over the land," said Wade Maring. "This is the first time in 20 years it's been this high. There was water in the cabin."

Gwich'in Helicopters pilot Chuck Grandy took two trips to bring 11 people, including children, from the cabin, landing at the baseball diamond in front of the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex. He said it wouldn't have been much longer before the family would have been stuck out there.

"The family was standing on the roof of their house," Grandy said. "We landed on a dry spot of land, but another half an hour and it wouldn't have been there."

The Maring family lives out at their cabin as year-round trappers. Chief Herbert Blake of the Nihtat Gwich'in Council picked up the evacuees and took them to a safe place in Inuvik until the water levels return to normal. This also marks the first time he's seen water levels this high.

"Since 1971, that was the last time the levels were out there," Blake said. "It's part of our life to go with the cycles of the delta, that washes out and cleans itself."

Staff Sgt. Wayne Norris of the Inuvik RCMP detachment said he received a call from the family at about 3 a.m. on May 27, alerting them to the potential need for evacuation. In consultation with the family, they decided the group needed to be airlifted out for their own safety.

The Inuvik area had experienced warmer temperatures since May 20, causing the snow to melt quickly and leading to washouts along the Dempster Highway during the Victoria Day long weekend.

The quick break-up of the river and high water levels also led to some trouble for the NTCL shipping company. Eight barges and three tugboats broke free of their moorings in Inuvik and floated downstream.

James Maring Sr. planned to return to his cabin on May 31 to survey the situation and see when his family could return to their home.

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