Alberta campus rec centers help residents affected by the Fort McMurray fire

By Emily Hughes

Over the last week and a half, we have watched and listened to the reports of the devastating fire in Fort McMurray, Canada. It is being reported that over 500,000 acres have been torched and the fire is still continuing to burn. The nearly 80, 000 residents of Fort McMurray have been relocated to Edmonton, Calgary, and to other cities in Canada, and several university campuses have opened their doors to become evacuee sites.

The University of Alberta is currently housing around 1,200 Fort McMurray residents on two of their main residences. Grachella Garcia, the Director of Campus and Community Recreation, reports that they have opened up their facilities to all Fort McMurray residents at no cost and are encouraging their participation in free drop-in for children, families, and adults. Read more about UAlberta’s response to the fire on their website.

NIRSA Provincial Director of Alberta Dominique MacDonald, Aquatic Manager at the University of Calgary, reports that along with the University of Alberta and Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), each school is serving as a distribution site for the government of Alberta’s prepaid debit cards for the evacuees. They are witnessing long lines as close to 80,000 Albertans are looking for assistance. Read more about the University of Calgary’s response to the Fort McMurray fire on their website.

Meanwhile at Mount Royal University, Recreation Director Chris Dawe shares that the university is hosting a little over 500 Fort McMurray guests in their residences. They have also opened up their Recreation Centre to the guests for free. Read more about Mount Royal’s housing of Fort McMurray residents on their website. One of the most challenging aspects of hosting these guests is having no real idea of how long they will be staying. Chris shares that it is likely that some Fort McMurray residents will remain on the campus until August when the university will prepare for students to arrive for the fall term.

NIRSA members are a strong family. Each of the schools reported that the best way to support them and the residents of Fort McMurray is to donate to the Canadian Red Cross online. Please consider supporting your Canadian NIRSA family members in whatever way you can.