Emergency Preparedness Week in Canada is May 5-11, 2024

A reminder to prepare a plan and not be caught off guard

It's Emergency Preparedness Week across the country and while it may seem obvious that people should plan to protect themselves,  it could help to be reminded of what you might need to keep handy in the event you can't return home for a few days. 

"Everybody should have a bag for 72 hours that if they had to be evacuated, they've got their medications, they've got some cash because as we've seen in the last year or so with all of these wildfires, you may not have access to a debit machine. You may not have access to your credit cards, " explained Donna Noble with Ponoka Country Regional Fire Services. 

The Protective Services Coordinator pointed out there are other things you may want to consider besides cash, clothes and medication. 

"If you've got pets, identify what you're gonna do with that pet, how you're going to deal with them and for the farms identify what you're going do or how you're going care for your livestock, whether it's during a wildfire, during a flood, it's just that awareness component to it." 

According to Noble it can be a case of thinking "it'll never happen to me." 

Vivid images such as those from the wildfires in Slave Lake and Fort McMurray serve as a reminder that the potential for evacuation exists.

"People think, oh, you know what, I don't have to worry about it. I live up on top of a hill. I'm not gonna have floods. or, you know, I've got, you know, fire smart. I've kept my trees clear, but that's not always the case because emergency preparedness, not only is our wildfires and, and floods, but it could also be a pipeline break. So we could be dealing with an emergency as far as maybe a gas cloud. It could be a train derailment in the towns of Ponoka or even Rimbey for that matter or any of the rural communities that lie in between. it. So it comes down to, yes, it can happen to you. We hope it never does. But just to have that concept that let's be prepared just in case. And it's like our fire trucks. It's nice to have that equipment, but we hope we never turn a wheel. So the same thing, have that 72 hour preparedness bag ready to go. We hope you never ever have to deploy it."