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Snow, ice leak at Labrador Friendship Centre causes partial closure

Snow, ice leak at Labrador Friendship Centre causes partial closure

Leaking snow and ice have forced the Labrador Friendship Centre in Happy Valley-Goose Bay to close part of its building.

As of Monday, four of its 12 hostel rooms are unusable, and the kitchen is closed to the public. However, it could be months before repairs are done.

Jennifer Hefler-Elson, the centre's executive director​, calls the situation disheartening.

"When you walk in and you see water coming through the roof, and you know you're going to have to do something that will impact on your revenue to the organization," she said.

"The hostel and the kitchen generate revenue for us, to help us stay open."

An unusually high amount of snow has fallen in parts of Labrador this year, with Upper Lake Melville getting more than three metres since October.

Some of that snow and ice build-up has leaked through the roof of the centre.

Ceilings had to be torn apart, flooring ripped up, and contractors are on site to dry up some of the rooms, as well as remove wet insulation and drywall.

"We have to get the leaks to stop, so that's being done. All the snow was removed, the ice — there was ice built up on the roof," she said.

"We are going to have to keep an eye on that, and try to make sure we can keep the snow off as much as we can. We're all hoping that's enough snow for us now, anyway."

Lost revenue

The centre provides a range of resources to Inuit, Innu, and NunatuKavut members.

The hostel rooms are available for people travelling to Happy Valley-Goose Bay for medical appointments, and the damage forced some people to find somewhere else to stay.

Damage to the kitchen forced a full closure initially, leading to the cancellation of some of the centre's catering contracts.

All of this means less money coming in to the centre and Hefler-Elson said it will hurt their bottom line, but programming and services will continue.

"Won't have to lay anybody off, or anything like that," she said.

Repairs are ongoing and Hefler-Elson said there are no mould problems, but it could be months before everything fully reopens.