Winter blast pushes hundreds to leave anti-pipeline camp

OCETI SAKOWIN CAMP, N.D. — Hundreds of campers fled this bustling anti-pipeline encampment Wednesday, urged on by tribal leaders and a bitter arctic blast with whipping winds that battered tarps, tattered tepees and collapsed tents.

But others were determined not to leave.

"We are not concerned about our people surviving on this land," said John Bigelowe, a Standing Rock Sioux tribal member and spokesman for the in-camp media service said earlier this week. "We have a long history here."

Already buffeted by several rounds of snow, the makeshift camp was punished Wednesday by winds gusting upward of 50 mph and subzero temperatures that aren't expected to break single digits anytime soon.

The camp had ballooned in recent days, as thousands of U.S. veterans joined American Indians and other protesters here to fight the Dakota Access oil pipeline that was set to cross the Missouri River near the camp.

But after pipeline opponents won a major victory Sunday with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announcing it would not grant an easement for the pipeline to cross the Missouri, Standing Rock Sioux tribal chairman David Archambault II asked campers to leave before lives were lost.

"We deeply appreciate all the people who supported us with their presence, but when this storm passes, it is time to dismantle the camp and return to our homes," he said in a statement. "If the camp stays where it is currently located, people are risking their lives."

He said the tribe got everything it wanted in the Corps decision and said no pipeline action would take place over the winter months. Standing Rock has objected to the pipeline, arguing that a leak could threaten the reservation’s drinking water.

The idle stoves and heaters in many dwellings were evidence that hundreds had heeded Archambult's plea.

But a smaller group remained committed to staying. Volunteers unloaded lumber from a U-Haul truck to build more structures at the camp.

The main kitchen remained open, and a handful of people huddled around the central sacred fire, home to thousands of people just a few days ago.

Just down the road, the Prairie Knights Casino resembled an airport hub, packed with abandoned travelers. As weather conditions worsened, many campers sought refuge in the casino’s pavilion, in its hotel hallways or other designated shelters in the area.

The slot machines sat mostly unused, as women at the front desk played travel agent on the loudspeaker, looking for people driving to Florida, Colorado and California.

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Amid the chaos, Julie Corbett, an Air Force veteran from central California, was trying to organize a bus back to Los Angeles.

“We’re welcome here; they literally just can’t support all the bodies,” she said. “You can’t have the size of the camp double overnight and be like, ‘We’re fine.’"

Corbett, 33, said the thousands of veterans who arrived to stand up against the pipeline weren’t able to confront police on the frontline as they had planned. Pipeline opponents claim local law enforcement officers have used excessive force, deploying Mace, tear gas and water cannons.

“We just needed to show up, and we did,” she said. “And they denied the easement.”

Everett Iron Eyes, the general manager of the 200-room casino, told Indian Country Today Media Network that as many as 1,000 people have sought refuge there in recent days.

“This is exceptional,” he said. “People are putting themselves directly in the elements outdoors and have nowhere else to go. It’s putting a strain on our resources.”

Bigelowe assured reporters earlier this week that Lakota tribes had survived on this land for thousands of years without incident. For outsiders, camp leaders have worked to ensure they stayed warm and healthy throughout their stay, he said.

"We have one or two tricks in our pockets," he said.

Shannon Brown, a 43-year-old member of the Cheyenne River Sioux tribe, said his tribe still had about five camps set up across the encampment. Several Sioux tribes are helping lead camp efforts, and Brown said Cheyenne River Sioux elders have not decided whether to leave.

If they agree with Archambault, he said he will leave. But for now, he’s staying put.

Still, he said the camp lacks the infrastructure to safely support the masses over the winter. A lack of sanitation control, mental health and medical services will make it hard even for those accustomed to North Dakota’s coldest months.

“Temperatures are going to continue to drop,” he said. “It looks like another storm is approaching, and it’s going to be even harder for people to stay warm.”