First Nations Demand Auditor General Investigate, As Second Fire Hits Grieving Community
-
Posted by Shelby Percival
- Posted in BlogsNews
Pictured above: Chief Donny Morris (Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug), whose three-year-old grandson tragically died last week in a house fire. Chief Morris is among a group of Chiefs urgently calling on the federal Auditor General to investigate the slow-walking of a pending human rights complaint by the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
In the wake of last week’s tragic death of a First Nations child, the Independent First Nations Alliance (IFNA) is urgently requesting that the Auditor General of Canada investigate the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s slow-walking of its pending human rights complaint regarding fire safety.
The filing with the Auditor General comes just as the grieving community of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug endured yet another fire over the weekend, destroying a home but, thankfully, resulting in no injuries.
IFNA’s human rights complaint, filed in August 2025, has languished for seven months despite the Commission’s promise to prioritize “ongoing, severe” matters. In its complaint, IFNA outlines decades of chronic underfunding and requests ignored by the federal government for measures to address a long-running fire safety crisis in IFNA communities. As outlined in the complaint, a First Nations child is eighty-six times more likely to die in a house fire than a non-Indigenous child.
Shortly after last week’s child fatality, of the three-year-old grandson of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug chief Donny Morris, the IFNA Chiefs adopted a resolution condemning the Commission’s inaction, and urging the Auditor General to exercise its powers to audit the Commission. To date, no response has been received from the Commission, or from the Auditor General’s office.
Previous Postings:
- Indigenous Service Minister Ducks Questions on Fire that Killed Three-Year-Old Boy – Falconers LLP – March 26, 2026
- Death of 3-year-old in KI linked to dysfunction of Canadian Human Rights Commission – Falconers LLP – March 25, 2026
Media Coverage:
- Alessia Passafiume, Canadian Press (Mar. 31, 2026): “Ottawa leaving First Nations ill-equipped to fight deadly fires: retired fire chief”
- Willow Fiddler, The Globe and Mail (Mar. 27, 2026): “First Nations group in Northern Ontario demands better fire service after child’s death”
- Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press (Mar. 26, 2026) – “Indigenous services minister questioned about fire that killed toddler”
- CBC News, Sarah Law, (March 26, 2026) – “Death of First Nation chief’s grandson in house fire spurs renewed calls for Ottawa to take action
- NetNewsLedger, James Murray (March 26, 2026) – “One dead after house fire in Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation”
- Sol Mamakwa, Ontario NDP (March 26, 2026) – ““Systemic discrimination and neglect,” Mamakwa responds to another tragic loss of a child to a house fire in a northern First Nation”
- Kenora Miner News, Klein Media (March 26, 2025) – “First Nation leaders call for ‘immediate responsibility’ after Chief’s grandson dies in house fire”
- Northwest Ontario News, Newswatch Staff (March 26, 2026) – “UPDATE: Young child dies in remote First Nation house fire”
- The Canadian Press, APTN News (March 25, 2026) – “First Nations call for audit of Canadian Human Rights Commission following death of 3 year old”
