Trudeau to visit B.C.'s wildfire zone
CBC News | Posted: July 25, 2017 3:59 PM | Last Updated: July 25, 2017
Prime minister met with newly sworn-in Premier John Horgan for 1st time on Tuesday
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he will be visiting fire-ravaged areas of B.C. amid a wildfire season that has pushed tens of thousands of people from their homes and destroyed dozens of businesses.
Trudeau announced the trip shortly after meeting with newly sworn-in Premier John Horgan on Tuesday. The prime minister said he will arrive some time next week.
It was Horgan's first official trip to Parliament Hill since becoming premier on July 18.
There are currently more than 20,300 evacuees across B.C. — down from 45,000 last Friday. More than 750 fires have burned more than 3,800 square kilometres in the province since April 1.
On Saturday, Federal Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale announced the Canadian government will be adding to funds managed by the Canadian Red Cross to help those displaced by the crisis. The provincial government is doing the same.
The ongoing fire situation is one of the top agenda items for Trudeau and Horgan, along with the opioid crisis, housing, climate change, transit and softwood lumber.
With files from the Canadian Press