Arctic insurance

The diocese of the Arctic’s executive committee has decided that all its parish buildings and contents be insured “for full replacement value,” after learning from its experience with St. Jude’s Cathedral in Iqaluit, which was destroyed by an arson fire in November 2005.

The igloo-shaped cathedral was insured, but high construction costs in the North meant that the policy could only cover about 20 per cent of the rebuilding, estimated at $7 million. The diocese has embarked on a campaign to raise money for the cathedral. The cathedral dean, James Barlow, reported that the diocese has already sent fundraising brochures to 4,000 individuals and to dioceses, seeking their permission to send it into their parishes.

The cathedral was demolished last summer after it was declared structurally unsound.