VANCOUVER – Telus announced today it is committing $1 million to support British Columbia through the recent flooding that resulted in a state of emergency.
The company is giving “$100,000 to the Canadian Red Cross to support the organization’s flood relief efforts, $100,000 to food banks across the province to support evacuees and British Columbians in need, and $50,000 to the BC SPCA to support their work to help animals and livestock in affected areas,” a press release says.
Additionally, the Telus Friendly Future Foundation is donating $100,000 and local Telus community boards are donating $150,000 to local charities to help with relief efforts. Telus will further “provide $500,000 of in-kind support in health, network and community services,” the release says.
This includes supporting those in the province who cannot travel to their doctors by offering free virtual healthcare through the Telus Health MyCare app. Evacuated Telus health patients who “usually receive their prescriptions by home delivery can contact us at 1-877-796-7979 to reroute their prescription, if needed immediately, to another location or accessible pharmacy,” the release says.
To further support those who have been evacuated, Telus is “waiving all mobility overages and pausing home service billing, so everyone can focus on staying safe and not worry about their bills. We are also deploying extra network technology like Wi-Fi to evacuation centres so that everyone can stay connected to their loved ones, and delivering comfort kits with necessities like toothbrushes and hand sanitizer to support evacuees.”
The company is also helping on the ground in the hardest hit areas of the province. “In partnership with the Sturgeon Slayers Conservation team, we are utilizing boats to bring critical supplies to support communities along Highway 7 and Highway 1, including Chawathil, Peters, Shxw’ow’hamel and Soowahlie First Nations who have been cut-off due to the mudslides and flooding,” the press release says.
“These communities are facing supply challenges for necessities like water, diapers, fruit, and non-perishable food items, and we are transporting these goods to them by boat. We continue to engage communities in B.C. to offer our support, including the possibility of using air transportation to fly in critical goods in areas that are inaccessible by boat.”
Telus technicians are also working around the clock to maintain their network to keep people in the province connected.
“Our Telus team is deeply committed to giving back to the communities where we live, work and serve around the world,” said Darren Entwistle, president and CEO of Telus, in the press release.
“In this regard, it is an honour to lend our support to British Columbians in the aftermath of the devastating storms and subsequent flooding that have ravaged many parts of our province. The thoughts of our entire TELUS team are with those impacted, and I am grateful to our team for continuing to demonstrate that when things are at their worst, Canadians can count on TELUS to be at its very best, offering our resources and human compassion to help our fellow citizens in need.”
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