With a number of evacuees and livestock taking up space at the exhibition grounds, many are wondering if this year’s BCNE Fall Fair will take place.
“We have over 200 animals in the barns that are usually being used by the heavy horse pull, we are getting down to a little better than three weeks away from the start of the fair and the fair itself is a minimum of a week just to set up,” says Alex Huber, BCNE president. “There is a lot of challenges but the rains last night have brought some renewed optimism – hopefully it’ll all come come together in the end.”
However, Huber isn’t giving up just yet. “We are a pretty resilient group as this is our 105th year and it’s not shutting down on my shift.”
The board will hold a meeting next week to decide what course of action to take on next month’s fair.
“That is the deadline when we have to make a decision on whether to move ahead with the BCNE or whether to have a toned-down version of the BCNE or whether to cancel it out right. For instance, the International Team Chainsaw Carving Competition we got competitors from Japan, America and also from Germany so they got to book their plane tickets and once they arrive, they need to get paid so the longer we wait the more financial hardship there will be for the fair.”
The annual event brings in significant dollars to the city’s community.
“The BCNE contributes $3.5 million dollars into the local economy every year, we get tons of competitors for our rodeo that are from Colorado, Montana, and Alberta that stay in hotel rooms, they eat, they fuel up and it is a big impact,” says Huber.
Over 9,300 displaced wildfire evacuees are currently in Prince George with several from the Cariboo occupying space at the exhibition grounds along with their livestock Huber says.
“If you have driven past the exhibition grounds, the ground is pretty full of evacuees and naturally they come first. We got to take care of our friends and brothers and relatives of course and that’s the way it has to be but obviously, the fairgrounds have to clear in order for us to clean it up, set it up for the upcoming fair.”
If the desired outcome is achieved, Huber is looking for as much volunteer assistance as possible. “The more people that help out the faster this is to set up whether it’s the convicts that help out every year from the prison down to our volunteers – the more the merrier and the faster the show gets on the road.”
The 2017 BCNE Fall Fair is slated for August 17-20.