In 2023, the Northwest Territories experienced one of its worst wildfire seasons, leading to evacuation orders for almost two thirds of its population. A year later, another wildfire led to the evacuation of 380 residents from the community of Fort Good Hope. These devastating incidents were preceded by the significant damage to public infrastructure and private properties caused by historic levels of flooding across the territory in 2021 and 2022.
Today, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, President of the King's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, announced payments of over $23 million to the Government of the Northwest Territories through the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program, to assist with response and recovery costs associated with the wildfires in 2024 and 2023, and extreme flooding in spring 2021.
When a large-scale natural disaster happens, the Government of Canada provides financial assistance to provinces and territories through the DFAA program. Through this support the Government of Canada covers eligible disaster response and recovery expenses that have been submitted by the province or territory and that exceed what they could reasonably be expected to bear on their own.
Extreme weather events and natural disasters are a growing threat to the safety and economic stability of Canadian communities. The Government of Canada has and will continue to work closely with the Government of the Northwest Territories to respond and recover from disastrous events such as the recent wildfires and flood.
