Prince George, B.C.-   Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is to  tour the fire ravaged  Fort McMurray  area today   and will meet with Alberta’s Premier Rachel Notley.

It is the Prime Minister’s  first, first hand look at the devastation  from the fires which destroyed 2,400 structures  and  forced more than 80 thousand people  from their homes.

Here in B.C.,  the  Provincial  government and  British Columbians  continue to offer assistance  to Alberta as that province moves into  recovery mode.

Here are some of the efforts :

• ‘Fort McMurray Comedy Benefit Show’ will take place this Saturday night at UNBC’s Canfor Theatre . minimum donation is $10 with all proceeds going to the Canadian Red Cross. Tickets are available at Books & Company, Studio 2880, Grizzly Auto Repair and at the door. The show starts at 7 p.m.
• British Columbians have donated $276 thousand dollars to the Red Cross through  donations at  BC Liquor Stores
• The Province has  donated $300 thousand  dollars to the Red Cross
• Two fire cause investigators and one fire weather forecaster from the BC  Wildfire Service  are  assisting in Alberta.
• 150 RCMP tactical troop and traffic service officers from throughout B.C. have been temporarily redeployed to northern Alberta at the request of the  federal government.
• B.C. has provided 187 firefighters, 25 support staff, an 11-person Incident Management Team,  eight helicopters and eight pieces of heavy equipment to fight the cross- border Siphon Creek fire.
• Alberta students relocating to British Columbia schools to complete this  year’s studies will be welcomed with open arms, and the Ministry of  Education will work with school districts to support these students.
• Health Emergency Management BC continues to work with the Public Health  Agency of Canada on responding to Alberta’s request for health worker assistance.
• BC Vital Statistics Agency will help people who have lost documentation in  the Fort McMurray fire by offering free replacement birth certificates.   People can call the agency at 250 952-2681 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
  (PDT) for assistance.

Effective today, government is also extending support to student loan  borrowers to ensure they do not face even greater difficulty managing  finances during this challenging time. For more information, contact Revenue Services BC at: 1-877 405-4909.