Celestin Erkidjuk

Celestin Erkidjuk was born in 1930 in Northern Quebec. He lived in Chesterfield Inlet and worked in Rankin Inlet before he moved to Iqaluit in 1962. His testimony includes information he heard about a tragic mauling incident that took place in Chesterfield Inlet around 1930. The wife of the HBC store manager was killed by an RCMP dog team. He heard that the RCMP officer used his authority to ensure the dogs were not shot, even though they had killed a person. Celestin’s own dogs were not killed by policemen but by other people. They were killed because he did not have proper chains for them and because they were vicious to people. He worked as a heavy equipment operator in various communities. He lost his hearing from working with dynamite and not following safety instructions.