Preparedness in Canada

Canada

I’ve been expounding the need for individuals to be able to take care of themselves in crisis situations, by having the supplies and training needed to do so, because the government won’t be able to provide the needed services in a crisis like Katrina or a pandemic.  That being said I know that most people think that it is just off base hysteria, but surprise, the Canadian Government advocates the same thing for the same reason and has been doing so since 2006.  They have stated that emergency services will be extremely limited and that they will only be able to handle the most serious cases as they arise during the first 72 hours of a crisis.

The Canadian Government is so serious about emergency preparedness that it has a website, www.marketwire.com/press-release/Public-Safety-Canada-956031.html, that advises its citizens to get and be prepared to take care of themselves for at least 72 hours. The site provides very good links to aid them with the task of preparation.

The three steps that are needed to get prepared are: 
1. Know the risks in your area; possible severe weather conditions, fires, earth quakes, pandemics, etc. or any combination of them. 
2. Make a plan so that your family knows what to do; decide your needs, establish family rendezvous locations (if emergency happens while at work and school), assign responsibilities, etc.  The plan can be as complex or simple as you want it to be, it just needs to be done and implemented. 
3. Get a Kit-you need a minimum of a 72 hour kit for yourself and each member of your family.  You should also have a kit for your car and I have recommended that you have more complete kits, that will sustain you for longer periods of time, since it may take longer to regain some resemblance of normalcy then 72 hours, it took about two weeks after Hugo hit Charleston to regain basic services (groceries, electricity, drinkable water, etc).

The public service announcements (PSA) I’ve seen on TV out of New York, mention having flashlights, emergency radios, and batteries for emergencies, but make no mention of food or water.  The concern for this spot was power outages, but they made no mention of possible extended outages or collateral problems.  This is a good start to educate the public that should be expanded as they have in Canada. My experience in regard to the preparedness mind set of city residents is:  We don’t need to prepare, the deli’s two doors away, the emergency service techs are a block away, etc. while never thinking that in a crisis that the deli won’t be open and emergency services will be overwhelmed.

 As the Hurricane season begins here in the South , PSA’s will advise people to get ready, but most people won’t do anything until a storm starts to track and then panic buying of preparation supplies will occur. The only people that will be prepared are some that were in a given coastal area when the last major storm struck.  This problem exists because of the large number of new residents that have moved to the coasts during the last 20 years that have not been through a major storm.
In contrast since Canada has started their preparedness campaign, they estimate that one in five citizens have gotten prepared.  They are continuing with an aggressive campaign to reach the rest of the citizens that still need to get prepared.

Let’s not wait, but rather take action and follow Canada’s lead and get ready to be self sufficient in an emergency.  Chewy and I want you to be as comfortable and safe as possible when an emergency occurs.

Tagged as: 72 hour kits, Canadian program, preparedness