As Pine Point mine plans a 2028 opening, a former resident remembers what once was

There could be a new Pine Point mine operating in the N.W.T. four years from now, but for one former resident, nothing could ever replace the community that surrounded the old mine.

There hasn't been an active zinc and lead mine at Pine Point in the almost four decades since the former mine and neighbouring community closed down and were abandoned. 

The new mine is currently in the development phase, according to Jeff Hussey, the CEO of joint venture company Pine Point Mining Ltd.

But there is no plan to redevelop a community near the site, which lies between Hay River and Fort Resolution, Hussey said.

Back when the old mine was operating, miners and their families lived nearby in a single industry town aptly named Pine Point.

Construction of both the mine and community began in 1962, and the community was incorporated in 1974.

Rashpal Sehmby was born in a small farming village in Punjab, India in 1969 but grew up in Pine Point.

He remembers that time in his life fondly and recalls the Sehmbys being the only Punjabi family in the community of almost 2,000 people.

Sehmby's father, Swaran, a heavy duty mechanic, immigrated to Canada in 1969 and ended up in Mississauga, Ont. He was working at a die factory when he applied for a job with Cominco Mines.

"He got a letter of an offer of a job to head up to some place called Pine Point, Northwest Territories," Sehmby recalled.

"He looked at the wage he was making in Mississauga compared to what he was probably going to make up north. And he said, 'Yep,' and he made his way up to Pine Point."

Sehmby and his mother, Gurmeet, stayed behind in India until 1974, when they made their way to Canada. Eventually, his brother, Dalbir, and sister, Kuljeet, would be born in Hay River.

Back in Pine Point, his father was fitting right in.

"Being the first Sikh and turbaned man in Pine Point, he was welcomed by his co-workers," Sehmby said.