Communities throughout B.C. are now benefiting from $33.5 million in provincial emergency preparedness funding.

The Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) has released the first three in a series of five funding initiatives designed to assist communities to prepare and respond to disasters.

“These funds are critically important,” said Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. “As we move into what appears to be another incredibly taxing spring flood season, these resources will assist the most vulnerable communities, not only to prevent catastrophic losses, but also to rebound more quickly in the event of an emergency.” 

Jennifer Rice, Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Preparedness, agrees. “These funds demonstrate to the people of British Columbia that our government is dedicated to their safety, assisting British Columbians to become more resilient and responsive in the face of natural and man-made disasters.”

The first three areas of funding are:

• Non-structural flood mitigation: including risk assessments, flood mapping and flood mitigation planning.
• Emergency social services: developing the kinds of registration systems, protocols and procedures to streamline the delivery of social services to affected communities.
• Emergency operation-centre equipment and supplies, such as cots, blankets and emergency social services (ESS) volunteer training.

Future disbursements will fund:

• Structural flood mitigation, such as pump stations and dikes.
• Evacuation routes: mapping and building egress routes out of communities that only have one road in and out of town.

Learn More:

For more information about individual community projects and how much they cost, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/emergency-management-bc/flood-protection-and-planning/flood-mitigation-funding-programs