SIOUX VALLEY DAKOTA NATION — Evacuees displaced from their communities in northern Manitoba were invited to Sioux Valley Dakota Nation on Friday for what the chief called a mental health day.

A hundred people were at the event in the afternoon when the Sun visited. Sioux Valley residents and wildfire evacuees were hosted at the local powwow grounds with live music and children’s entertainment.

The event was a way to give a day of fresh air to evacuees, Chief Vince Tacan told the Sun.

“We thought we’d give our relatives from the north a mental health day, because staying in hotels gets hard after a while,” Tacan said.

Tacan added the event is combined with a recreation day for locals and a wrap-up event for the summer.

Tacan did not know how many evacuees were expected for the day.

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