The City of Prince George is continuing to receive and provide accommodation to evacuees from the Cariboo Regional District due to the recent wildfires.

As of 7:00am this morning, the City had provided for 88 people in group lodging, 67 evacuees had been billeted, and 14 were staying in RVs in the College of New Caledonia (CNC) parking lot.

Thus far, 150 beds have been set up at CNC and about 45 were still vacant as of this morning.

The City has helped 162 students and 63 children and has also distributed $17,752.50 in grocery vouchers.

City staff were at the Northern Sport Centre (NSC) this morning to set up further evacuee accommodation. Staff have placed an additional 190 cots at the NSC and have a few hundred more on-site ready to be used.

The City has also hired security to be on-hand at both CNC and the NSC and is providing meals and food vouchers.

Important note: all evacuees must first go to the emergency reception centre at CNC and then will be directed to their place of lodging.

Hundreds of citizens driving RVs and attending a recent conference at CN Centre are now unable to head south to return home. The City is asking citizens in need of assistance to visit the emergency reception centre at CNC to request service.

How to help

There have been many generous offers from residents to volunteer, donate, or even offer their homes to evacuees.

Offers to donate food, clothing, and other items, while kind, can create logistical issues for staff that can hamper efforts to help the evacuees. For this reason, the City is encouraging people wishing to donate to do so via giving funds to the British Columbia Fires Appeal with the Canadian Red Cross.

The City has a list of dozens of trained volunteers it is drawing from to help with its efforts. All volunteers must first be properly trained prior to being given a placement.

Residents wishing to provide accommodation for a person or family often do so via social media, including by posting on the City’s Facebook page.