Inuvik’s Muskrat Jamboree cancelled, will next be held in 2021

The organizers of Inuvik’s Muskrat Jamboree say the event, originally scheduled for the end of this month, will no longer take place.

The jamboree committee said all outdoor and indoor events had been scrapped. The Midnight Sun Complex, which had been due to host some indoor activities, had already been closed to the public by the Town of Inuvik until further notice.

In a news release on Tuesday, organizers said the cancellation was a “difficult but responsible decision.”

The same day, the NWT’s chief public health officer said all mass gatherings of 50 or more people must be cancelled.

“We have heard our community members who have expressed concern with any gatherings that may unintentionally expose attendees to risk,” Tuesday’s statement from the jamboree committee read.

The same statement urged people to look after each other and “remember and look after our Elders at this time.”

Organizers expect the next Muskrat Jamboree to be held on April 9-12, 2021.