A remote village on the west coast of Vancouver Island has been approved for a $25,000 Community Emergency Preparedness Fund (CEPF) to assist with the costs of installing an electrical generator.
In January, the VIllage of Zeballos notified the Strathcona Regional District (SRD) about the need for installing an emergency generator to serve the community centre, fire hall and village office.
SRD applied for the grant and the Union of B.C. Municipalities approved the application under the 2020 emergency support services funding stream within the CEPF umbrella.
The CEPF funding program is an initiative to enhance the resiliency of local governments and their residents in responding to emergencies.
Zeballos previously received funding to purchase the generator to serve various public facilities in the event of power disruptions.
Meredith Starkey, chief administrative officer of Zeballos, said that there was a dire need for a back-up generator in a remote community such as Zeballos.
“We have to be self-reliant in the event of power outages or natural calamities,” Starkey said and maintained that installing a back- up generator was important to power emergency centres in the village.
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