In May 2016, the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, including Fort McMurray and surrounding areas, experienced extreme wildfire conditions driven by hot, dry weather and high winds. The highly destructive wildfires became the most expensive natural disaster in Canadian history, forcing the evacuation of more than 80,000 people, burning approximately 579,767 hectares, destroying 2,400 homes and businesses, and damaging critical infrastructure and major transportation routes.
The Government of Canada has provided the Province of Alberta two payments, totaling $385,394,638 through the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program to assist with the recovery costs associated with the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires. Payment details are as follows:
The Government of Canada provided an advance payment of $307,000,000 in June 2016, to help address urgent and immediate costs related to evacuation, emergency response, and early recovery activities.
Final payment
Following the submission and assessment of eligible costs incurred by the Province of Alberta for disaster response and recovery activities, the Government of Canada issued a final DFAA payment of $78,394,638 in January 2026.
This final payment reflects the full reconciliation of eligible expenses submitted by Alberta under the DFAA program for the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires.
Examples of eligible cost-shared under the DFAA
Eligible costs under the DFAA program include extraordinary disaster‑related expenses that exceed what a province can reasonably be expected to bear on its own. For the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires, examples of eligible costs include:
- Evacuation payments to support evacuees in meeting essential needs
- Structural firefighting and parks restoration costs
- Incremental costs associated with the use of heavy equipment, such as fire trucks
- Reasonable expenses for the restoration of property damaged by response activities
