By Kendall Robertson

FortisBC Employees Thanked For Wildfire Recovery Efforts

Feb 15, 2018 | 2:10 PM

PRINCE GEORGE- The BC Economic Development Association presented a plaque to FortisBC employees in Prince George this afternoon to thank them for their help during the wildfire season. A call centre was set up in the Prince George office for business owners in the province’s interior to get the support they need. This was the first time the BCEDA set up a business recovery hotline.

Taking the calls hit close to home for some employees, including Natalie Anthony, who is from 100 Mile House. “I worked in most of the businesses in 100 Mile, so it was very important to make sure I could do whatever I could do to help from here.”

Once Fortis employees gathered information from business owners, the BCEDA would connect them with resources to help get them back on their feet. “Businesses are what make up the economy, we need to make sure those businesses can get the supports they need,” said BCEDA president and CEO, Dale Wheeldon. “We did everything from finding farms hay, we helped log home manufacturers find temporary log supplies, all because these calls were being made and we were able to do something with that information.”

Centres in Prince George and Burnaby received nearly 500 calls, the hotline was in service for about 10 weeks.