Indigenous services minister questioned about fire that killed toddler

OTTAWA — First Nations chiefs from northern Ontario demanded answers Thursday from Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty after they linked the death of a three-year-old boy to a lack of federal funding for fire services in their communities.

On Monday, a house fire in a northwestern Ontario community took the life of Chief Donny Morris’s three-year-old grandson and left two others with serious injuries.

The Independent First Nations Alliance, a group of five First Nations that includes Morris’s own community of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, filed a Canadian Human Rights Commission complaint in August 2025 alleging Indigenous Services Canada was systemically discriminating against their communities by underfunding on-reserve fire services.

Chief Carla Duncan of Muskrat Dam Lake First Nation — a member community of that alliance — told Gull-Masty during a Nishnawbe Aski Nation meeting in Toronto Thursday the community is still searching for the child’s remains.

“Our communities have been raising concerns about fire safety and a lack of resources for years. We have clearly said that these conditions are dangerous,” Duncan said, asking the minister what she will do to prevent further tragedies.

“A child is gone, a home is burnt to the ground, and families are left to carry that loss … The issues raised in that complaint (to the commission) are within your responsibility.”

Duncan was the third chief to ask Gull-Masty questions during a question-and-answer period at the meeting that followed the minister’s speech.

Gull-Masty was 12 minutes into her answer before she briefly acknowledged the child’s death.

She first spoke about her experiences as the first Indigenous person to serve in the role and how she envisions Indigenous Services working with communities.

“When there’s challenges, when there’s issues that are faced in the community, we have to work together to collaborate, to train, to do that work. And sometimes that can be timely, sometimes that can be quick,” she said.

“But I want people to know and understand that my intention in coming into this space — in choosing to become a minister here — is really to make sure that I’m building something that is going to uplift those future First Nations leaders that will be in this space.”

The Independent First Nations Alliance says its case before the Canadian Human Rights Commission has been languishing since it was submitted, and it has not received updates from the commission since it asked for one nine weeks after submitting the complaint.

The alliance has called on the federal auditor general to investigate the commission.

In an emailed statement sent to The Canadian Press, the Canadian Human Rights Commission said it is “deeply saddened by the news of this tragedy.”

“While we can’t comment on individual cases that are currently before the Commission, there is a trend of turning to the complaints system under the Canadian Human Rights Act to address underfunding of services on reserve, often when requests for adequate funding have been ignored,” the statement says.

“The problems we’re seeing are long-standing, serious and systemic. Climate change is making these challenges worse by increasing risks to housing, safety, and community well-being in First Nation communities. That’s why the Commission has long been calling for real, systemic changes to address the chronic lack of funding in First Nations communities.”

Julian Falconer, a lawyer working on behalf of the First Nations, wrote another letter to the commission on Wednesday urging it to prioritize their case.

“We are now seven months since this complaint was filed, and, tragically, the nightmare scenario that we raised in our correspondence has now transpired,” Falconer wrote.

“Absent immediate action by the commission, another child will die.”

The First Nations’ submission to the Canadian Human Rights Commission cites staggering statistics: on-reserve First Nations people are 10 times more likely than non-First Nations people to die in a fire, while First Nations children under 10 years old are 86 times more likely to die in a fire than non-First Nations children, according to Statistics Canada.

The First Nations say that reality is due to “systemic neglect,” compounded by poor housing conditions, overcrowding, and a lack of fire halls and firefighting equipment.

At the Nishnawbe Aski Nation meeting, Gull-Masty announced a $738.9-million funding package for First Nations health care, governance and emergency management.

She is earmarking $55.6 million to build up community preparedness and emergency management co-ordination. The funds are not directly related to fire management but could help with operations such as wildfire support.

Gull-Masty said the new funding will help provide First Nations with the tools and resources they need to support their communities.

“We want to ensure that we are working with you to continue delivering services and advancing priorities,” she said. “Especially the ones we know are at the heart of every community, issues like housing and building the future of your communities.”

The funding package includes $400 million over five years for health services and digital health tools in remote communities, including supports for nurses.

Chief Clifford Bull of Lac Seul First Nation, a member community of the Independent First Nations Alliance, told The Canadian Press Thursday the loss of Morris’s grandson was “devastating” and could have been prevented if communities had proper fire services and training.

“Our people continue to face real risks because of that. What we’re saying is enough is enough,” he said.

“We have been clear that lives are at risk if these conditions continue. This is not something that came as a surprise to our communities … How many more children have to die before something is done about this?”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2026.

Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press