My mother just sent me an e-mail. They live in Yellowknife, NWT, Canada.
My dad watched a 747 land at the airstrip in Yellowknife today. Parked on the tarmac were a 777 widebody jet and a 747. They had been diverted to Alaska but ran out of fuel.
The airport in Yellowknife is just a very small airport and will not be able to handle all of the people; the airstrip is not built to accomodate such a large aircraft as the 777 and most non-essential personnel have been sent home.
Mom wants to know how the hell a city the size of Yellowknife will feed and shelter all of these people. It’s only about 17000 souls, and the hotel situation does not look like it will survive the influx. The Department of National Defense (military) is apparently taking care of them for now. Mom has offered the use of her home and has not yet been taken up on the offer.
Disaster services has asked one of Mom’s clients, a catering company in Iqaluit, Nunavut, to open up to feed the stranded travellers.
This will just prove to you all that we are not by any means immune to the effects of the terrorism in the US. Our thoughts are with you all, even though we can’t be there with you.
I deeply appreciate Canada allowing America bound planes to land there. When I heard that the airports were all closed I thought, what about all the international flights that can’t turn back?
Go, Canada! I’d sing a few bars of “It’s a Small World”, but I wouldn’t want to sound flippant in the face of such mind-boggling events, so I won’t. [I’ll just diabolically insert the tune into your head instead] [because it’s in mine now, and you might as well join me in suffering]
I have not the slightest doubt but that the Canadian government will figure out some way to house and feed everybody. Surely they’re not going to just make them sit there on the tarmac until the U.S. decides it’s safe for them to come home again.
Is your Mom’s client gonna get paid by Disaster Services for opening the catering service up, or are they asking them to donate the food, or what?
A very good questions, Duck Duck Goose. I would imagine that the DND will offer some sort of remuneration to the caterer, but it will only be a stipend.
[shrug]
We’re used to helping out where it’s needed. That’s what Canada does. We’re the helpful auntie everyone forgets about until we’re needed, and then we do it with no reservations.
I have heard fragmentary reports about the planes forced down in Yellowkinfe, with some speculation that they were hijacked and forced down by the US or Canadian military.
Since you have a source on the ground there, is there any truth to those reports.
canadians not only stand on guard for canada, they stand on guard for the usa. many towns and cities in canada are doing all they can to support all the planes that were diverted. i heard st. john’s has 27 planes from the us.
the fact that canada’s flag is flying at half mast for us is very, very, moving.
Last report here in Moncton New Brunswick is that 25international flights have been diverted to our modest airport. The passengers and crew have been evaced to the Moncton Coliseum for processing by the Red Cross, churches are calling people to make sandwiches, I am certain Tim Hortons will come through with coffee, hotels in the area will help out.The last time we had to help was when those children were killed outside of town in that bus crash from Boston, and the community made a very decent effort in that case.
Please know that every single person in Moncton is thinking about you tonight.
I cried when I read the threads about dopers checking in, I am so glad you are ok, I am so so deeply sorry for the terrible losses to you.
I am at a loss for words, our hearts are aching for our american neighbors, be careful, stay safe, we love you.
Uhmm, the allegedly hijacked plane went to the airport in Whitehorse, Yukon.
I thought I should perhaps post here, but c’mon, the Yukon so rarely has any news, I thought it deserved a thread of its own.
The part that really brought it home though, was the thought that the casualty list in New York was almost twice the total population of the Yukon. Deaths alone may equal it. That’s almost everybody I know, except for you Dopers and some distant family.
With planes falling out of the sky willy-nilly in the States, I think that it’s a pretty damned brave act on the part of Canadians and the Canadian gov’t to allow American-bound aircraft over their airspace. Though I’m also sure that they took appropriate security precautions to preclude the possibility that any further terrorist acts meant for America wouldn’t inadverdantly come to harm them.
I had a first-hand taste of Candian hospitality at the International Scouting Jamboree in 1983. I contracted a nasty stomach bug and had to be taken to the Canadian Army equivalent of a M.A.S.H. deployed to support the medical needs of 20,000+ scouts from all over the world.
A shot to kill the bug, a shot to knock me out for about 24 hours, and a first-class breakfast of scrambled eggs, Canadian bacon, and a tall stack of flapjacks with real Canadian maple syrup to send me on my way. MMMM-good!
A heartfelt “Thank You Very Much!” from this American for the help and hospitality of our northern neighbors.
I was thinking of that too. All those planes coming in from overseas, and for all we knew, some of them had bombs or fanatic suicide bombers on board…let’s send them to Canada!
A heartfelt thank you to our friends and allies to the North.
We have three large diverted jets here in Edmonton as well.
I flew for 5 years off of a 14,000 ft Runway, built in the 1950’s by the U.S. on Canadian soil, with our permission, to allow B-52’s to stage out of Edmonton in case of war.
We’ll always be here ready to help out in any way we can. It’s not just that you’re our closest neighbors, it’s the Canadian way.
I hope this horrible day has the beneficial side effect of bringing our countries a little closer. There is a lot of anti-U.S. sentiment among some people in Canada, but today everyone forgot about that. I felt as much shock and dismay at what happened as I would have if it happened in Toronto. Seeing how people in some other cultures think and act just underlines how similar Americans and Canadians are.
Amen, Sam. I don’t want to become xenophobic over this, but right now I’m glad that our nearest neighbours are American.
Even if they have funny-looking money.
I can tell you what I know is that we, in Moncton, are housing 1800 passengers. Last night the colliseun slept 300 people, the rest went to hotels and were billeted to people’s homes. The elderly, sick and families were sent to these places first.
The Red Cross had to turn away hundreds of volunteers as there were just too many people trying to help.
I work in operations for Tim Hortons, and I can tell you everytime there is ANYTHING like this we are the first ones there…we arrived and were set up minutes after the Red Cross. I am so proud of all my staff and the company I work for. I am working 16 hour days to be there…as are the others from the office as well as countless staff members. I can’t even begin to tell you the number of people paging and calling me offering their help.
Other local companies were there within the hour with hotdogs. Coke unloaded an entire tractor trailer full of pop, juice and water. By dinner time there was pizza, chicken fruit and I don’t even know what else provided by local reataurants.
McDonalds was there by 7 am with egg mcmuffins and hashbrowns for breakfast.
There are bigscreen TV’s set up, a family room for kids, internet and telephone access for the passengers.
All of this has been donated by our local companies. There is no charge to these people. I can tell you first hand that during this extremely sad and traumatic time, I could not be prouder of my country and community.
Jesus!!!
In the few minutes since my previous post I have been paged to be told that there has been a bomb threat at the colliseum. Everyone is outside.
Chances are it is nothing more than a prank…what a bunch of sick fuckers! Unfortunately such a tragedy is just the reason every nut in the northern hemisphere is going to need to come out of the woodwork.
SO… I am headed back (so much for a nap)
Reporting from inside the Coliseum in Moncton NB, Canada…this is Angela signing out for about 9 hours.
How horrible, Angkins! Just when I was feeling all proud of us!
We only got ten in Whitehorse. Since it’s getting to be the end of the tourist season, the hotels were emptying out and there was enough room, last I heard. One of the owners of one of the smaller Bed & Breakfast places was on the radio within an hour of the announcement to co-ordinate billeting for all the passengers.
There was a bit of speculation about whether those 767’s were going to be able to take off again, though. But we just lengthened our runway, so it should be no problem.
For our American friends, Tim Horton’s is a national coffee-doughnut-bakery chain. Best damned donuts in the world.
Tim Horton’s shows up wherever there is need. Any time there is a problem, they show up with aid, and coffee.
It would appear that everything here is still grounded. Update on our pathetic local radio station says that hotels are overbooked now, as they can’t turn away people who are stranded. We’re all affected by this tragedy, and I can’t even help.
Ginger…having spent a half century 30 miles south of the Longest Undefended Border in the World ™, I can tell you that at least the thoughtful part of us down here are too. (Even if you cannot pronounce “schedule” properly! ;))
(Even if you cannot pronounce “schedule” properly! ;))