Since the August long weekend, and with activity increasing significantly this past weekend, the BC Hotel Association (BCHA) has been working closely with the Provincial Government; Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, and Sport (TACS); Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness (EMCR); and tourism partners to support communities affected by wildfires.
Representing approximately 600 hotel members across British Columbia, BCHA was asked to serve as the central industry source for identifying commercial accommodation availability and rates in specific regions. We have issued multiple requests directly to hotel operators, consolidated available inventory and shared that information with government to support the placement of evacuees, emergency personnel and others displaced by the fires. Centralizing this work is essential to reduce duplication, provide accurate information and allow hotels to focus on supporting their guests and communities.
Hotels across the province have responded quickly and compassionately. Many have made rooms available on short notice, offered compassionate rates, adjusted operating plans and supported guests arriving under extremely stressful circumstances. BCHA is proud of our accommodation operators and their teams – they have stepped up, often while managing significant operational pressures of their own.
We understand there are concerns that some government-contracted room blocks remain underused while evacuees are still waiting for accommodation. Where the Province has established a confirmed hard block, those rooms are being held exclusively for emergency use and cannot be sold by the hotel to other guests. They are therefore not vacant in the commercial sense. Decisions regarding how and when evacuees are assigned to those rooms rest with the emergency accommodation system, not with individual hotels.
The Province acted quickly to secure capacity as wildfire conditions changed, and it is prudent to have rooms available should further evacuations become necessary. At the same time, we want to ensure that confirmed rooms are connected with people who need them as efficiently as possible.
BCHA remains ready to work with EMCR, Emergency Support Services (ESS) and our tourism partners to address any gaps, improve the flow of information and help move evacuees into appropriate accommodation as quickly as possible.
Premier David Eby noted “We know that during the peak of evacuations in Summerland this weekend, some evacuees experienced delays accessing Emergency Support Services. To improve response times, we have increased staffing on the B.C. Evacuee Helpline by more than 400%, deployed additional staff to the region and are continuing to secure accommodation throughout the Okanagan. Emergency Support Services can help evacuees with basic needs, such as accommodation, food and other essentials.”
Our industry’s priority is straightforward: work with accommodators to understand availability, get information in the hands of government to process evacuees, keep BC residents and visitors safe and supported in the affected communities and ensure every available room can be put to the best possible use.