It is important to be prepared for whatever emergency might come along.
That was the message Yorkton Council received from Darcy McLeod, Director Community Development, Parks & Recreation at their regular meeting Monday.
鈥淎lthough our current attention has been, and needs to be on responding to the COVID 19 pandemic, we still need to be prepared for weather events that are becoming a more regular occurrence each year,鈥� he told Council. 鈥淭herefore, as part of my Emergency Social Services (ESS) involvement in emergency preparedness, I鈥檇 like to remind our community that National Emergency Preparedness Week is coming up May 3th - 9th, 2020.
鈥淭his annual, national public awareness campaign reminds Canadians to be prepared for emergencies at all times and that, in an emergency, families should be able to survive without assistance for three full days.鈥�
McLeod noted 鈥淎ccording to Public Safety Canada, 鈥渋f an emergency happens in your community, it may take emergency workers some time to reach you. You should be prepared to take care of yourself and your family for a minimum of 72 hours.鈥� However, that takes planning, which is what Emergency Preparedness is all about - being ready for nearly everything.鈥�
There are essentially three steps to Emergency Preparedness: knowing the risks, making emergency plans, and getting emergency kits ready.
鈥淭o help people stay informed about any potential risks, the Government of Saskatchewan has an emergency public alerting program 鈥� SaskAlert. An emergency alert issued through SaskAlert will let you know: what the emergency is; where it is happening; provide instructions for you to follow to stay safe, and advise you when the incident is over. The alerts are broadcast on the radio, the television, and on mobile devices through their app,鈥� offered McLeod.
More information on SaskAlert can be found here: http://www.saskatchewan.ca/residents/emergency/saskalert
鈥淎ll residents need information to make decisions so, during Emergency Preparedness Week, everyone is encouraged to download the SaskAlert app on their mobile device, if they haven鈥檛 done so already,鈥� said McLeod.
鈥淲ith respect to the other two steps for Emergency Preparedness of making emergency plans and getting emergency kits together, there are a wide variety of online resources. These can be found online at www.getprepared.gc.ca and also, on our website under the 鈥淟iving Here鈥� tab and then click on 鈥淓mergency Preparedness鈥�.
鈥淚 urge everyone to know the risks, make a plan and put together a kit.鈥�
