Nishnawbe Aski Nation leadership declared a state of emergency for communities relying on winter roads to get essential services at their annual Winter Chiefs Assembly Thursday.

"It’s a real crisis for us," said Grand Chief Stan Beardy. "The majority of First Nations were not able to use the winter roads. They were not able to haul the basic essentials and that is heating oil, diesel fuel, and building materials."

Normally, the ice roads are open from the beginning of January to early April but the mild winter weather this March caused the roads to close weeks earlier than usual.

The chiefs are calling on Indian and Northern Affairs Canada to provide emergency funds to cover air delivery of needed goods to the communities.

"It is an emergency," said Beardy. "Without diesel fuel, there is no power and if there’s no power in the community, there will be no health services; the stores, the schools will be shut down."

Sandy Lake First Nation Chief Adam Fiddler said his community isn’t able to bring in all the building supplies it needs.

"We have roughly 2,700 people living in Sandy Lake; there’s a shortage of housing," he said. "There’s a shortage of infrastructure. We were planning on building 17 homes this summer. Unfortunately we’re only able to maybe get five or six homes. So there’s over 10 housing units we’re not able to bring up."

Fiddler said they’re also not able to bring in a fire truck to Sandy Lake.

"It’s an essential service in the community; we need to find ways of bringing in our materials," he said.

In the government doesn’t step in, communities could be facing expenses of up to $3,000 for one mid-sized aircraft. Fiddler said that brings the price 100 to 200 per cent more than the cost of the product.

"For communities where there is a lack of employment, where a lot of people are on social assistance, that extra cost is a burden for the entire community," he said.

Beardy said he expects the government to step up in an emergency because they expect to have the same rights and services that everyone in Canada has.

"Our children are entitled to education; we have to make sure the schools are open," he said. "Our people are entitled to proper health care so we have to make sure our clinics are open. Our people are entitled to meals, so we have to make sure the stores are open."