An Alberta housing company has offered free rent for three months to hundreds of Fort McMurray evacuees in hopes of spreading a bit of goodwill after the devastating wildfire ravaged the northern Alberta town.
The 100 free apartments located in Edmonton, Calgary and Saskatoon filled up in less than a day after they were advertised, according to the company’s CEO.
“It’s times like this us Albertans get together and we unite under difficult circumstances,” Mainstreet Equity CEO Bob Dhillon told CTV News Channel on Tuesday.
More than 80,000 people were forced to flee Fort McMurray last Wednesday after an uncontrollable wildfire encroached on the town. About 2,400 of the city’s 25,000 buildings were lost to the fire.
The company estimates that 200 to 300 residents will live in the apartments.
“I think it’s a great honour for us to give back to the community and us being in the residential apartment business, this is a perfect fit,” Dhillon said.
In addition to free rent, residents received $500 worth of Ikea gift cards to make the apartments feel more like home. After the three months are up, they will be given the option to stay.
“I figured it would take 90 days for a lot of these Fort McMurray evacuees to kind of get their life together and get their life around, and that’s exactly what we did,” Dhillon said.
The housing company is just one example of an outpouring of kindness across Canada.
A group of Syrian refugees living in Calgary started a donation drive to buy toiletries and everyday essentials for evacuees. A Cape Breton woman who won $2.9 million in the Chase the Ace lottery said she will donate some of her winnings toward the Red Cross. On Monday, the Red Cross said it has received at least $54 million in donations, and the federal government has pledged to match donations collected until May 31.
Dhillon says his company isn’t expecting anything in return from the gesture.
“Just positive energy, that’s all we want,” he said.
