Premier Dennis Fentie and other Yukon Party officials toured the Southern Lakes region Thursday, inspecting the flooding damage.

Fentie, Community Services Minister Glenn Hart and Education Minister Patrick Rouble (the Southern Lakes MLA), accompanied by department officials, conducted an extensive tour of the impacted areas. They included the Army Beach subdivision at Marsh Lake, Carcross, Tagish, and Lake Laberge.

For Fentie, it was the first time to visit the sites, which have experienced the highest levels of water on record.

'It is quite devastating when you look at it,' Fentie told reporters after his excursion.

'I saw it from two perspectives: in the air and on the ground, and the devastation is obvious.

'The response and effort on the ground right now is making a big difference. We are actually saving residences and properties.

'Any person I've talked to today that is a citizen who has been impacted had nothing but accolades for the effort that is going on and the response that has taken place.'

Upon his return from his outing, Fentie emphasized several times that the focus will remain on the current response effort. Anything regarding federal assistance, compensation to property owners and the cost of the response effort will be dealt with at a later time.

'Right now, our efforts and focus will remain on our required response so we are being as effective as we can,' Fentie said. 'We'll deal with what we've got to deal with in the immediate, and then put together what is necessary should we be required to approach the federal government.

'We don't need some sort of definition to call this is a catastrophe it is one. We are dealing with the highest levels of runoff in recorded history. I would call that, given the impact, a catastrophe.'

The financial cost of the ongoing emergency response effort is being tabulated and monitored, but Fentie refused to speculate on an exact dollar value.

'Those things will come after the fact, but right now all our forces, our resources, are focused where they should be.'

Opposition Leader Arthur Mitchell said he'd heard numerous people voice disappointment that Thursday was the first time Fentie had visited the flooded areas.

'I recognize that he can't be out there sandbagging for hours on end because he's a busy man, but I think it's important to get out there firsthand to see what government resources should be put into this effort,' Mitchell said.

The Liberal leader first visited Army Beach with a group of people from his office on Thursday of last week, at which point he realized the seriousness of the situation.

He assisted with the sandbagging effort at the Department of Highways and Public Works yard on Quartz Road in the Marwell industrial area on Wednesday, and planned to return this afternoon.

Liberal MLA Don Inverarity also helped fill sandbags on Tuesday afternoon.

'Like everybody else, I'm just thrilled with the way everyone has really pitched in,' Mitchell said. 'I have no criticism at all for the way EMO and (Department of) Highways and Public Works have responded; it's just excellent. They've escalated their level of response to match the situation.'

He also urged the government to have a close look at property damage and costs after the situation has been resolved to ensure they provide proper compensation, and apply for federal disaster assistance if it's warranted.

Mitchell also said the government should focus on prevention of such events. The territory experienced high water levels in 1981 and 2004. Mitchell said if this is something that could happen on a more frequent basis due to climate change, the government should be prepared to do something about lowerlying levels such as Army Beach and South McClintock.

'They might have to look at infrastructure, some possible engineering, perhaps, and how this can be mitigated in the future,' Mitchell said. 'I don't think people are going to want to fill sandbags every summer.'

The New Democrats' Steve Cardiff also hoped there would be an extensive review process after the situation is resolved, similar to the one that took place after a busy fire season in 2004.

'There was lots of knowledge gained which helped in moving forwards in preparedness,' Cardiff said.

'When this crisis is over, hopefully we can similarly learn ways in which we can work faster and better assist people.'

Cardiff was helping sandbag at Army Beach last Friday and Saturday and planned to return this weekend.

'I was amazed by the effort being put forth there,' he said. 'People were tired, but they just kept going.

'Some of them had been working for two weeks at that point, and almost three weeks by now. It's a real concentrated, valiant effort to save these homes.'

Cardiff visited the North McClintock subdivision last Saturday night, where the bank is being eroded and undercut in some places.

'We need to keep an eye out there to ensure that those homes don't become threatened as well.'

Late Thursday afternoon, Fentie flew to his home riding of Watson Lake, where flooding has started to become an issue as well, due to a major downpour earlier in the week.

Initial reports are that water levels in Wye Lake are very high, and that water is being cross-pumped to other areas to prevent infrastructure damage.

Fentie returned to Whitehorse Thursday night.