The Inuvik homeless shelter has reopened after closing on Thursday.

A coalition of agencies in the community came together to ensure that the shelter stays open, said Inuvik, N.W.T., Mayor Denny Rodgers. Their efforts reopened the shelter just eight hours after it closed.

However, Rodgers said the territorial government should help keep the shelter open.

"This is not an Inuvik problem specifically, it's a regional problem. We have people in our community from the outlying communities as well," he said.

The N.W.T. government provides $180,000 in annual funding to the homeless shelter. The town of Inuvik provides no direct funding, but only charges $1 a year for rental of the 20-year-old building where it is housed.

The Nihtat Gwich'in Council, which runs the facility, spent about $300,000 to keep the shelter open last year, band administrator Barbara Crawford said last week. The shelter left the council with a $50,000 annual deficit, band officials said.

More than 20 people have stayed at the shelter on some winter nights, and about 10 people were staying in the shelter when it temporarily closed its doors on Thursday.