Part of the issue is the numbers but also the erratic areas where folks come from. Do you build housing for 3? 5? 20,000 people in a Whitehorse/Grande Prairie/Sioux Lookout/Tutuyuktuk? That might be double the size of some communities and they don't have just the shortage of housing but also sewer/medical/groceries etc. in town to support them. It's why you'll hear of remote, fly in communities in Northern Ontario being scattered from Kenora/Thunder Bay/Sault Ste. Marie/Toronto as the hotel rooms alone limit how much can be done.
That negative aside there has been temporary camps set up (Slave Lake 2011) or use of industrial camps (Fort Mac 2016) for examples where folks were given a safe spot until a longer term solution can be created. It's not so bad in July/August where there are more empty schools/arenas that can be used but it's really tough in April when Universities and public schools are still in use.
Solutions?
- prioritize road building to connect these remote communities. Even a single lane road + airstrip allows for dual options for escape vs. a single airstrip...especially if it's a gravel strip. It also has the potential to allow for a big drop in cost of living due to the ability to truck in essentials like groceries vs. airlift everything. This doesn't mean everything connects (my wallet just shrunk thinking about how much that'd cost) but would be an evacuation route to a second alternative location...think Fort Mac in 2016 moving residents north to the camps/airstrips up there as an interim measure until either airlift or conditions changed to allow road egress.
- It may be appropriate to look at planning wider for emergency response than just provinces. Is High Level a local evac center or is it also the next major community for anyone evacuating from the NWT? Fort Nelson is the next major center from the Yukon via Alaska Highway. Start with a large gravel pad where a temporary camp could be set up if needed + fuel bowser + power supply. A series of pre-established staging areas might be the low cost option so that WHEN the region needs to evacuate folks know they can a) refuel vehicles regardless of budget b) have a safe place to pull over and rest c) can be an interim assembly areas for families separated and d) a solid location for an Incident Command Post/Base camp for accommodations if needed. This however would need to have all the billing pre-established so that a small town knows in advance the bill is being pad by the neighboring area/agency/town.
I tend to think in about 5 hour radius travel circles as that is "roughly" a tank of gas. IF you're in a place like Northern Ontario with longer gaps between major communities then it's a case of road hubs (including gravel options) for your mid point location. But key here is low ongoing maintenance costs as least to start.
Longer term I often think of what would happen if the CAF and Canadian Universities both went on major "dorm/barracks" housing builds. Towers of multiple bedroom "quarters" that would serve a multiple purpose role of a) reducing some of the rent pressures on CAF members if they knew there were SQ/PMQ available at a common rent rate regardless of posting b) pull some of the student housing pressure off of communities and c) in case of emergency allow for use of vacant rooms for evacuees.
I can dream of winning the lotto Max jackpot too
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foresterab