(CBC)

Recent flash flooding prompted the Nunavut hamlet of Pangnirtung to declare a state of local emergency Wednesday as officials seek outside help to restore essential services in the Baffin Island community.

High winds and heavy rains over the weekend damaged two bridges over the Duvall River, including a new bridge that was supposed to open this summer.

With both bridges now closed, residents have no access to municipal services such as the water reservoir, sewage treatment plant, and garbage dump.

In fact, residents in the hamlet of 1,325 are being forced to dump raw sewage into the river, which flows into the pristine waters of the Pangnirtung Fiord.

The hamlet council passed a resolution Wednesday asking for outside assistance, senior administrative officer Ron Mongeau told CBC News.

"We need to address the garbage problem because the community is cut off from our garbage dump," he said Wednesday.

"We need to do additional work to ensure that water is going to continue to flow and will be able to service all the houses in the community."

Poor flying weather Wednesday prevented the Nunavut government from sending emergency crews into the community, which is not accessible by road. The hamlet hopes the crews will arrive on Thursday.

Mongeau said his community is also seeking "short- and medium-term solutions … to dumping our sewage in the river."

Pangnirtung's new bridge was put into commission when the existing one collapsed on Sunday. But a major earth movement under the new bridge by Monday night caused hamlet officials to decide not to use it, Mongeau said.

So much water has been blasting along the river that it carved a 10-metre channel through the permafrost, right down to bedrock.

Truck pumps water over bridge

Officials parked a water truck on the far side of one bridge before it became impassable. That truck is now pumping water through a hose across the bridge to another truck, which then ferries the water to residents.

"We are limited in a way that we cannot access the [water] reservoir through the bridge. We're doing that, pumping water from one vehicle to another," Deputy Mayor Atamie Komoartuk said.

The hamlet is asking residents to continue conserving water, which they've been doing since Sunday, until further notice.

Sewage is being dumped directly into the river about 50 metres from where it flows into the fiord, which is the site of a productive local fishery for both char and beluga whales.

Mongeau downplayed environmental concerns: "By the time the sewage hits the fiord, it has been well flushed by a river that's still running strong," he told the Canadian Press on Wednesday.

Pangnirtung MLA Peter Kilabuk thanked residents for being co-operative so far, while crews try to restore services.

"I wish to ... state our sincere appreciation for their patience while the municipality and the government try and find solutions to this very unfortunate problem that we are facing in the community right now," Kilabuk said.

Sunday's heavy rains also washed out a power pole near one of the bridges. That left some residents without electricity until Monday, when crews from Qulliq Energy Corp. flew to Pangnirtung and stabilized the pole.

With files from the Canadian Press