More than 200 Slocan Valley businesses were assisted by a regional economic assistance program following last year's wildfires.
A summary provided by the Slocan Valley Economic Development Partnership (SVEDP) shows 224 businesses directly benefited from funding, loans and advertising after five wildfires burned simultaneously in the valley in July and August 2024.
The fires forced the evacuations of Silverton and Slocan as well as the surrounding rural areas, and impacted what are annually vital tourism months for the region.
The SVEDP, which represents New Denver, Slocan, Silverton and the Regional District of Central Kootenay's Area H, facilitated $130,000 in low-interest loans to seven businesses through Community Futures Central Kootenay. The partnership also offered training workshops, business counselling and marketing.
Voucher programs organized by the SVEDP led to 991 of them being redeemed, $6,805 in direct sales and $17,390 in total sales stimulated for Slocan Valley businesses. The SVEDP summary does not show how many, if any, businesses were forced to close for good due to the wildfires.
Ron Leblanc, co-ordinator for the partnership, said the small organization did the best it could for residents with what resources it had.
“What stood out for me is there's no amount of preparation that you can do to really prepare yourself for an emergency, and then things unfold very quickly," said Leblanc. "So we learned the most important thing to do was really to show up in the community, to be seen, and to do whatever you can in your power, no matter how small it might seem or insignificant.
"The response from community members that you're there, that you care, that you're listening, that all has a huge impact for them.”
The SVEDP was funded with $30,000 from Community Futures British Columbia, $15,300 from Columbia Basin Trust and $7,375 from the Ministry of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation.
A spokesperson for the B.C. Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness said the provincial government approved up to $548,000 for the RDCK to use on response and recovery efforts related to the Slocan Valley fires. Another $67,000 was provided in October to fund a community recovery manager position.
B.C. received $35 million from the federal government to help offset costs incurred for responding and recovering from the 2024 wildfires, including the Slocan Valley wildfire. The federal Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements program supports provinces and territories with overall emergency response and recovery costs from large-scale disasters, which can include evacuation operations, restoring public infrastructure, restoring or replacing uninsurable principal dwellings and small businesses, and mitigation measures. (The program doesn't include wildfire damage to private homes, which is typically covered by insurance.)
Leblanc said he would like to see a provincial fund set up to help residents and businesses recover in the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster, similar to the federal Canada Emergency Response Benefit made available during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“My message to the community is let's remember to be grateful, but also let's remember that this is a fluid process and that there are open doors of communication with the province to be able to improve and learn from past years."
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated the Slocan Valley received no federal assistance following the 2024 wildfires. In fact the province used federal funding to provide relief to the region.
