(Ottawa) The federal government will match all donations made to the Red Cross to help disaster victims in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces who were affected by post-tropical storm Fiona on Saturday, the Prime Minister announced Justin Trudeau.
Posted at 5:38 p.m.
During a press briefing in Ottawa, Mr. Trudeau explained that this measure put in place by the federal government will be in effect for 30 days and will concern donations from individuals and businesses.
He mentioned having spoken with the premiers of the provinces affected, therefore with Mr. Legault in Quebec, and having assured them of all the collaboration of the federal government to manage this crisis.
In particular, Nova Scotia submitted a request to receive assistance from the Canadian Armed Forces to begin cleaning up the debris, which Ottawa approved.
The Minister of National Defense, Anita Anand, also indicated that the army is ready to intervene in all places where its presence is required.
Mr. Trudeau was originally scheduled to travel to Japan this weekend to attend the funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, but he canceled his trip due to the storm.
Mr. Trudeau also confirmed that he will be in the field in the coming days, once it is safe to do so. He added that he does not want to interfere with the efforts of first responders.
“We can already see a lot of damage and the situation remains critical. Today and tomorrow, I encourage everyone to continue to listen to local authorities and do whatever it takes to stay safe,” Trudeau said.
Fiona arrived with winds blowing around 150 km/h when she made landfall around 4 a.m. local time in the east end of Nova Scotia.
Gusts of 90 to 120 kilometers per hour were reported in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, the Magdalen Islands and southwestern Newfoundland, with gusts reaching 161 km/h on Beaver Island, Nova Scotia.
The storm knocked out power to more than 500,000 customers in the Maritimes.