Post by Sassy on Jan 30, 2008 19:45:45 GMT -5
TORONTO — A Saskatchewan First Nations community is grieving the loss of two toddlers who froze to death in the snow. Their father is being treated for hypothermia and frostbite.
CTV.ca News Staff
RCMP cover the body of the missing girl found dead on the Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008. (Troy Fleece / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
RCMP cover the body of the missing girl found dead on the Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008. (Troy Fleece / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Police discovered the frozen body of a one-year-old girl Wednesday on the Yellow Quill First Nation, east of Saskatoon. Her three-year-old sister had been found the day before.
"From the people that I've talked to, they are very affected, very deeply, from what's happened here. For some it hasn't really sunk in yet, they're numb," Yellow Quill First Nation Chief Robert Whitehead told CTV Newsnet by phone.
He said that some of the people he spoke to "were very distraught, crying, hoping it wasn't true."
The father of the girls was picked up by police early Tuesday morning, suffering from exposure to the extreme cold.
It wasn't until about eight hours later that the man, recovering in hospital, told police his two daughters were missing.
"He was conscious, he was awake," RCMP Sgt. Brad Kaeding told CTV Newsnet. "There is some suspicion that alcohol was a contributing factor."
Kaeding said the suspicion is that the man's level of intoxication prevented him from telling hospital staff or RCMP about his daughters.
Police believe the man left his residence to go to another house about 400 metres away. The man is also believed to have left his house with his children.
Kaeding said the three-year-old girl, wearing only a diaper and T-shirt, was found between the two homes.
CTV's Mike Ciona, reporting from the reserve, said the one-year-old was also found in the same area.
The mother of the children lives in the community but it is unclear what she was doing during the time period in question, said Kaeding.
CTV.ca News Staff
RCMP cover the body of the missing girl found dead on the Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008. (Troy Fleece / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
RCMP cover the body of the missing girl found dead on the Yellow Quill First Nation in Saskatchewan on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008. (Troy Fleece / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Police discovered the frozen body of a one-year-old girl Wednesday on the Yellow Quill First Nation, east of Saskatoon. Her three-year-old sister had been found the day before.
"From the people that I've talked to, they are very affected, very deeply, from what's happened here. For some it hasn't really sunk in yet, they're numb," Yellow Quill First Nation Chief Robert Whitehead told CTV Newsnet by phone.
He said that some of the people he spoke to "were very distraught, crying, hoping it wasn't true."
The father of the girls was picked up by police early Tuesday morning, suffering from exposure to the extreme cold.
It wasn't until about eight hours later that the man, recovering in hospital, told police his two daughters were missing.
"He was conscious, he was awake," RCMP Sgt. Brad Kaeding told CTV Newsnet. "There is some suspicion that alcohol was a contributing factor."
Kaeding said the suspicion is that the man's level of intoxication prevented him from telling hospital staff or RCMP about his daughters.
Police believe the man left his residence to go to another house about 400 metres away. The man is also believed to have left his house with his children.
Kaeding said the three-year-old girl, wearing only a diaper and T-shirt, was found between the two homes.
CTV's Mike Ciona, reporting from the reserve, said the one-year-old was also found in the same area.
The mother of the children lives in the community but it is unclear what she was doing during the time period in question, said Kaeding.