Federal and Provincial Government Reactions

On June 22nd, 2013, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Premier Allison Redford and Calgary’s Mayor Naheed Nenshi gathered in Calgary to take a helicopter tour of flood-damaged areas across southern Alberta.  The federal, provincial, and municipal governments coordinated response to Alberta’s flooding was imperative to the regions disaster response and recovery. With costs continuing to reaching the $6 billion mark, continued government cooperation is needed. 

The Government of Alberta (GOA) pledged $1 billion in immediate aid and resources to help affected municipalities rebuild and recover.  Provincial estimates suggest that between 100,000 and 120,000 people were impacted, resulting in major losses in productivity and infrastructure damage [1]. To address this impact, the GOA began handing out preloaded debit cards to individuals and families affected by the flood, with adults eligible for $1250 and children eligible for $500 [1]. The pledged $1 billion went to providing immediate relief for towns and smaller municipalities impacted by the flood. 

While final Federal government contributions to flood relief and recovery measures remain unknown, the Government of Canada recently announced another $700 million for flood recovery. Overall, the federal government has provided Alberta with $2 billion to help with flood recovery costs [2]. Given circumstances agreed to under the disaster assistance agreement, the federal government is responsible for compensating provinces up to 90% of approved disaster costs [2], therefore, total costs paid by the federal government are still to be determined. Nonetheless, the federal government’s commitment to aiding Alberta through the difficult recovery process remains strong.