VICTORIA — Burns Lake Indian Band Chief Al Gerow says out-of-work mill employees suffering the after-effects of a deadly workplace blast are now facing mounting bills and uncertain futures.

Gerow says he was at a breakfast meeting with Babine Forest Products workers where he heard them raising desperate concerns about missing mortgage payments and putting food on the table.

Two workers died and 19 others were injured in last month's unexplained explosion that levelled the north-central B.C. mill, putting 250 people out of work indefinitely.

Locals say the shock of the blast is starting to wear off and as reality sets in, many people are openly worrying about feeding their families, even though there are numerous relief efforts underway in the area.

Gerow says he and five other area First Nations chiefs will deliver a proposal to Jobs, Tourism and Innovation Minister Pat Bell today that ensures the U.S.-owned mill has a guaranteed timber supply.

Gerow says the chiefs will ask Bell to directly award to the First Nations the rights to 1.1 million cubic metres of available area timber to ensure there's wood to supply a new mill.