Arctic Life... And Death (Part Two)

When the snow falls (and it often does), folks rush outside to do some sledding.  Parents take their kids to the nearest hill, and down they go.  Sounds like fun right... think again.  The nearest hill, is always the street right outside their house, and the children are taught from the earliest age that you slide down the street when the snow falls, and the streets are slick.  These are the same streets that are regularly traversed by substance abusers driving various vehicles... still sound like a good idea?  With that build up, you should obviously be able to figure out the end result.  She was 8.  The driver of the quad didn't even stop to see if she was OK.  He just kept driving, hoping to not get caught (since he was clearly intoxicated).  It's a pretty small town.  It didn't take long to track him down.  That was four weeks ago.
When there's enough snow, the main mode of transportation is snowmobile.  There were two ladies (also intoxicated) driving down the road towards their homes.  They were driving a little too fast for the curve, and were heading for a hydro pole.  The driver turned the skis to the left, and the left ski caught the pole.  The driver flew off to the right, while the passenger flew straight into the pole.  She was 24, and the mother of three.  The driver is being charged with manslaughter.  That was three weeks ago.
I don't know the story behind the next guy, and I won't speculate.  He was found hanging from a belt.  He was 28.  That was two weeks ago.
Last week, thankfully, the only death was an elderly gentleman in ailing health, who had a heart attack while sleeping.  Only two days earlier, I had been to his house to have him sign an authorization form, to allow his son to cash his cheques for him.  The only problem here, is that in the last five days, seven of his relatives have all been to the store to try to claim the money left on his cash link card.  No remorse.
So, with a bit of insight, hopefully you can forgive me when so many of my blogs are about sports, entertainment, or some other pointless thing that has nothing to do with everyday life... and death, in Salluit.

Stay tuned for something completely different.