Emergency Preparedness Week: Be Ready for Anything

News release

For immediate release

Saanich Emergency Program Officer Captain Erin Stockill and Emergency ProgramSecretary Paige Marshall demonstrate how to prepare a grab-and-go emergency kit.

 

Emergency Preparedness Week: Be Ready for Anything

Saanich, BC – The Saanich Emergency Program encourages residents to take part in Emergency Preparedness Week from May 1 to 7, 2022. Emergency Preparedness Week is an opportunity for you to take action to ensure you are prepared to protect yourself, your family and your community during an emergency.

This year, the theme is Emergency Preparedness: Be Ready for Anything.  This theme intends to encourage individuals and families to take action to become better prepared for the range of emergencies they could face in our region.

“Being ready means having a plan to meet your household’s needs in an emergency. This is often easier than we think,” said District of Saanich Deputy Fire Chief Brock Henson. “We want to remind people that they are the expert on their family’s preparedness. Every household is unique, and community resilience starts with individuals and families.”

Saanich recommends preparing to be self-sufficient for a minimum of seven days. It’s important for families to know precisely what their needs are to support themselves for this length of time.

Simple tips: 

The Saanich Emergency Program is making it easy to prepare by offering the following simple tips to get you started.

Start simple, start now. Start with simple, easy to accomplish tasks. Place one item for your grab-and-go bag on the kitchen counter now - like a toilet paper roll. Add another item every day. When the pile gets too big, put it in a bag and keep adding to it!

It’s easier than you think. You already have most of the items you need for an emergency kit. Centralize the items you already have in a bin and access them regularly so they’re familiar and up to date. Where’s the flashlight? In the emergency kit!

Shop smart. On grocery shops, purchase an extra can of an item that is part of your family’s regular meal routine and build toward a minimum of seven days of preparedness. Store foods familiar to your family so you are not introducing new foods at what could be a stressful time. Building your kit in advance may reduce the strain on our supply chain from panic buying.

You’re the expert. Remember you are the expert on your household’s preparedness. Seven days of preparedness depends entirely on who lives in your home and their unique needs. What are yours?

Learn more:

The Saanich Emergency Program invites you to participate in the following virtual activities during Emergency Preparedness Week:

• Get Prepared! Visit our website at saanich.ca/prepare for helpful preparedness tips.  Read our page on practical preparedness and download the Regional Guide to Emergency Preparedness.
• Visit our YouTube channel and watch our videos on breaking down barriers to preparedness and how to make your very own dry toilet!

• Stay tuned to catch our 26 Weeks to Preparedness Twitter campaign kick-off next week. Each week we’re sharing a simple preparedness tip and by week 26, which coincides with The Great BC ShakeOut, your household will be prepared for a minimum of seven days.

Find more information about the Saanich Emergency Program at saanich.ca or on Twitter @SaanichEP and @SaanichFire.

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Media contact:
Captain Erin Stockill, Emergency Program Officer
Saanich Fire Department
Erin.Stockill@saanich.ca
250-475-7140