Mud Lake is a small unincorporated community in central

Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. It had a population of 54 as of 2021. The town is not accessible by road. It is usually reached by crossing the Churchill River by boat (during summer) or snowmobile (during winter).

Notable people

Elizabeth Goudie Elizabeth Goudie (née Blake; April 20, 1902, Mud Lake, Newfoundland and Labrador, Mud Lake, Colony of Newfoundland – June 10, 1982 Happy Valley – Goose Bay, Happy Valley, Labrador) was a Canadian Inuit, Inuk writer. Her sole work, ''Woman of L ...

, writer, was born there in 1902. Her son

Joseph Goudie Denzil Joseph Goudie ONL was born in 1939 in the small community of Mud Lake, Labrador, Canada. His mother was writer Elizabeth Goudie. Goudie is known for his career as a broadcaster for the CBC, and as a provincial public servant. He has al ...

, a politician and former broadcaster, was born there in 1939.

Flooding

In May 2017, the town was affected by severe flooding and its residents were evacuated to

Happy Valley-Goose Bay Happy Valley-Goose Bay (Inuit: ''Vâli'') is a town in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located in central Labrador on the coast of Lake Melville and the Churchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest population centre ...

. Many residents have planned a lawsuit against

Nalcor Energy Nalcor Energy was an energy corporation headquartered in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. A provincial Crown corporation under the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nalcor Energy was created in 2007 to manage the province's energy re ...

, the company behind the

Lower Churchill Project The Muskrat Falls Generating Station is a hydroelectric generating station on the Churchill River (Atlantic), Churchill River in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It is located downstream of the Churchill Falls Generating Station. The station at ...

upstream from the town which is alleged to have caused the flooding. From June to December 2017, the residents resided at

CFB Goose Bay Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay , commonly referred to as CFB Goose Bay, is a Canadian Forces Base located in the municipality of Happy Valley-Goose Bay in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is operated as an air force base by ...

. An independent report on the flooding conducted in 2017 by KGS Group concluded that ice jammed up at the mouth of the Churchill River because of a combination of natural causes, forcing water over the riverbank, caused the flooding. In 2019, a Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court justice ruled that a class-action lawsuit filed by Mud Lake residents against

and the provincial government related to the flooding could proceed.

References

Populated places in Labrador Road-inaccessible communities of Newfoundland and Labrador Car-free zones in Canada {{Labrador-geo-stub

Notable people

Flooding

See also

References