Emergency Preparedness
The 4.1 magnitude earthquake off the south-east tip of Orcas Island, in March, serves as a good reminder to once again, think about emergency preparedness. Given the location and nature of the area the CBRA represents, we are subject to any number of events that could lead to an emergency situation – earthquakes, tidal waves, fire, strong winds, etc.
The CBRA has long been conscious of this and in 1998 established the CBRA Emergency Preparedness Task Force. Nearly 30 years later, the Task Force is alive and well. Hand in hand with the CBRA, the Task Force has as its objective: to encourage and assist residents of Cadboro Bay to be prepared to cope with whatever disaster or emergency situation may come our way. More on the CBRA Emergency Task Force can be found on our Emergency Preparedness page
Given that emergencies can happen across a wide scale we encourage all CBRA area residents to prepare themselves with a view to staying safe and by extension being able to assist other neighbours.
In this regard, the CBRA encourages all residents to be aware that catastrophic events can happen at any time and preparing for emergencies is an invaluable thing to do. Here are some basics.
- Talk to your nearby neighbours about emergencies. Consider planning together. Can you easily get in contact with them in an emergency. Are any particularly vulnerable to emergency situations? Can you share emergency assets locally.
- Consider your home; are there safe areas within it, have you identified a family meeting place outside the home, does your family have a known safe escape route from your home and property, how will you handle extended power outages (flashlights, candles, extra blankets, an emergency clothing bag etc.), are trees encroaching to close to your home, which could be a hazard in a windstorm, fire or earthquake?
- Do you have a small stash of cash easily reachable in your home.
- If need be, how will you evacuate the area.
- Do you have skills that could assist other neighbours? Do you have other assets that could be used for search and rescue?
- Don’t forget to plan for pets.
Luckily the Province of B.C. and our municipality have developed a number of very useful planning tools to assist you in formulating plans.
The Province of BC has a number of sites that focus on Emergency preparedness. We recommend you check out and use the many great tools that are available through the PreparedBC Emergency Guides and Resources site. Some of these resources are available in French, Chinese and Punjabi.
The District of Saanich has a terrific Emergency Program web page as well. It is well resourced and offers; ideas on emergency preparedness, Saanich preparedness planning meetings and session on emergencies, as well as other information to help you plan your emergency strategy.
Please take the necessary time to examine these resources, plan for an emergency and consider how you and your neighbours can best prepare for events that could impact your very local area.