The City of Toronto recognizes the important role that community sector organizations play in emergency management.
From conducting business continuity planning to supporting the City’s efforts to respond to and recover from events, community sector organizations are key partners in ensuring the readiness and resiliency of Toronto. Community sector organizations play an active role in providing response and recovery services, especially for some of the more vulnerable members of our community such as newcomers, seniors and individuals with disabilities – so it is especially important for these organizations to have systems and strategies in place to continue delivering their important services during an emergency. Community sector organizations also play an important role in increasing the personal preparedness of their employees and volunteers, such as encouraging people to have an emergency plan for their families and to maintain an emergency kit.
Toronto’s Office of Emergency has developed a series of Get Emergency Ready guides to support Torontonians to take steps to be prepared for emergencies. You can use these guides to help prepare your organization for an emergency, as well as to promote personal preparedness for your employees and volunteers.
Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management launched the quarterly Partners in Preparedness newsletter for community sector partners in 2019.
On April 24, Mayor John Tory announced the start of Toronto’s COVID-19 Recovery and Rebuild Strategy. The City of Toronto’s rebuild goals are twofold: save livelihoods and live safely with COVID-19.
While our priority in the Office of Emergency Management remains reducing the spread of COVID-19, minimizing demand on the health care system, and ensuring the delivery of essential and critical City services, we have started working with the new Office of Recovery and Rebuild to prepare Toronto to get back to a new normal in the weeks and months to come.
But we can’t do this alone. That’s why we are engaging you – our emergency management partners in preparedness, and now in recovery – in this important discussion. We want to hear from you and understand what you need to rebuild in the coming weeks and months. We encourage you to reach out to oem@toronto.ca with questions or to share recovery resources.
Moving forward, a new edition of Partners in Recovery will be circulated every two weeks to keep you updated on our emergency management response and the road to recovery. All information will also be posted on our Partners in Preparedness webpage.
The 25th anniversary of Emergency Preparedness Week looks a little different. The traditional focus on encouraging our partners and the wider community to build capacity to respond to emergencies has been turned upside down by a pandemic that is challenging our resiliency.
That said, COVID-19 has reminded us that emergencies can happen at any time and how important it is to be prepared. This pandemic is the first time the City of Toronto has declared a State of Emergency in the city. The City’s Emergency Operations Centre has been mobilized for 56 days – our longest activation ever. This ongoing emergency has tested our processes. We have learned a great deal and look forward to sharing with the community once our response pivots fully to recovery.
If your organization is able, there are great resources available to help recognize Emergency Preparedness Week:
May 4 to 9 is also Mental Health Week. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Toronto, led by Medical Officer of Health Dr. Eileen de Villa, has stressed that it’s OK not to feel OK. Tips for mental health and community resources for mental health support are available on the City of Toronto COVID-19: Mental Health Resources webpage.
The City’s website is updated daily with the latest health advice and information about City services, social supports and economic recovery measures.
City of Toronto COVID-19 Business Supports
Toronto Public Health Advice
2020 Quarter 1 Combined Newsletter
Welcome to a new year and a new version of Partners in Preparedness!
Partners in Preparedness now combines our private sector and community-based newsletters into a single quarterly newsletter. We hope that this newsletter will help build a community of partners, from the private sector to community-based organizations to agencies across the public sector. We look forward to working together to help everyone across the City of Toronto prepare for emergencies.
2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) continues to make news. Many people have questions about the virus and the role of the City of Toronto in preparing for and protecting the city from infectious diseases.
You can find current information here: Toronto Public Health Coronavirus Information.
On January 12, 2020, a test of the Province of Ontario’s nuclear alerting system accidentally went province-wide. The alert was sent by mistake during a daily, routine system test conducted by the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre.
There has never been a nuclear incident that posed a threat to human health at Pickering Nuclear Generation Station. Still, the false alert reminds us of the importance of making sure that everyone in Toronto has the information they need to be safe.
Although the risk of a nuclear power accident is very low, the City of Toronto has a detailed plan for this type of incident. The City of Toronto, Province of Ontario and Ontario Power Generation all work together to continually improve emergency plans.
Potassium Iodide (KI) helps block radioactive iodine from being absorbed by the thyroid gland. More than 40,000 orders for Potassium Iodide were placed on the Prepare to be Safe website in mid-January. In an average month, the site receives between 100 and 200 orders.
The Province of Ontario is the lead organization for nuclear response, please see the Emergency Management Ontario Nuclear Website for more information.
For more information about Toronto’s plan, our partners and other helpful resources, please see Toronto Nuclear Preparedness.
Get ready with a Workplace Emergency Kit.
It should include cash (bank machines may not work in an emergency), comfortable shoes, food, water, extra clothes and a flashlight. Start today by putting a flashlight in your desk. Then add some cash. And so on.
For more information see the “Get Emergency Ready At Work” guide.
Over the past year, the City has been working with its partners to improve how apartment building property owners and operators prepare for and respond to “vital service disruptions” like building fires. The City has developed new standards to protect the health and wellbeing of tenants during such an event.
These new standards apply to building owners and operators under the RentSafeTO Program. RentSafeTO covers buildings that are three or more storeys and contain ten or more units.
Changes have been made to Chapter 354 of the Toronto Municipal Code. Building owners and operators under the RentSafeTO program must now:
Building owner and operators who do not implement their established vital service disruption plan during a time of prolonged vital service disruption may be found guilty of an offence.
For more information: Visit the RentSafeTO program web page.
Vital services are essential services that apartment building owners and operators must provide to keep tenants healthy and safe.
They include things like:
Vital service disruptions happen when these services are unavailable to tenants because of an incident within the building.
Have a question about flood plains? The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) has the answer.
The flood plain is the flat area along the shorelines of rivers and streams at risk of flooding. Mapping the flood plain is an important part of planning and emergency management.
This knowledge helps guide sensitive land use away from high-risk areas. It also helps identify ways to mitigate flood risk, to better protect people and property, and to make our urban areas more resilient.
There are two main types of flooding: riverine flooding and urban flooding. Riverine flooding occurs when rivers and streams overflow into surrounding areas. The TRCA works to reduce riverine flood risks.
Riverine flooding is different from urban flooding. Urban flooding occurs when local drainage systems overflow, flooding streets, basements and other low-lying areas. Visit Toronto Water Basement Flooding for more information about urban flooding.
TRCA has a developed a Flood Plain Map Viewer. Simply put your address in the search bar to see if you are within the regulatory flood plain.
Building? Renovating? Landscaping? Excavating? All these projects require a permit. Please use the Regulated search tool to determine if your property is within TRCA’s regulated area.
Do you live or operate a business in a Flood Plain? To learn more about the rules and regulations regarding development within TRCA’s regulated areas, please see TRCA’s Planning & Permits section.
Need to know more? See Frequently Asked Questions, at the bottom of the Flood Plain Viewer Page.
Live or work in the Jane-Wilson neighbourhood? Visit Jane-Wilson Flood Risk Area for information.
By Charles Jansen, Director, Office of Emergency Management
It’s been a busy and productive first few months as the new Director of the Office of Emergency Management for the City of Toronto. Through it all, I have reflected on the lessons I learned from my many years in the military.
I am always struck by how important it is to look at the big picture. It is easy to get distracted by the details. But getting lost in the details is a bit like putting your nose up to a tree and not realizing there’s a whole forest around you. You have to step back to see the whole picture.
Only when you have a holistic view of the incident can you begin to solve the problem. This is important, because it’s not just the immediate problem you have to solve. You have to think about the impacts of every action you take, including the second and third order effects that are the result of every action you take.
This can seem a bit overwhelming, but when it does, I fall back on another thing I’ve learned through experience. To solve a big problem, you have to break the problem into smaller, more achievable tasks.
It’s like the old joke: “How do you eat an elephant?” The answer is always: “One bite at a time.”
In the early hours of Sunday, January 12, 2020, the TTC conducted a test of its emergency readiness.
The exercise involved a mock fire on the TTC’s Line 1 between Finch Station and North York Centre Station. Power in the tunnel was cut and tunnel ventilation fans were activated. 280 passengers were then led off the train to track level to evacuate.
At the same time, TTC station staff conducted a mock evacuation of Finch Station and Transit Control Centre staff practiced procedures for implementing emergency turn-backs at Sheppard Station.
Role players for the event included members of the TTC’s Advisory Committee on Accessible Transit (ACAT) and volunteers from Spinal Cord Injury Ontario. Their participation was key as TTC and Toronto Fire Services were able to practice the mobilization of specialty apparatus to ensure that persons with accessibility needs could be evacuated in a safe and timely manner.
311 provides easy access to all City of Toronto non-emergency services. Have a question about snow-removal or help finding the nearest flu clinic or other City services? Call 3-1-1. You can email a question to 311@toronto.ca , reach out to @311Toronto on Twitter or visit 311 information.
211 provides information and referral services to community and social services. If you need information about health support or a referral for employment services or help accessing over 20,000 other services, call 2-1-1. For more information visit 211 information.
911 is for use in an emergency, when seconds count. When police, fire or medical emergencies occur, call 9-1-1. For more information visit information about 911.
Sometimes it’s hard to know where to get help. If you or someone you love needs non-emergency mental health support, 211 can help you find the right service.
If the situation is an emergency, please call 9-1-1.
But imagine that you are on the street and you see someone you don’t know in obvious distress. How do you know who to call?
If the person appears to be an immediate threat to themselves or others, please call 9-1-1. If the person is not a threat, but is in distress or seems to need help, call 3-1-1. 311 will arrange for the appropriate City service to send help without tying up emergency services.
If you know of an organization who would like to subscribe, they can sign-up to receive the newsletter here. The OEM will also continue to post the newsletter on its Partners in Preparedness website.
By email at OEM@toronto.ca
By phone 416-392-4554
On twitter@TorontoOEM
October 2019 Edition – Print Version
The City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) launched the Partners in Preparedness newsletter for private sector partners in 2018. In 2019, the OEM added a second newsletter covering topics of interest for community-based organizations.
Starting in 2020, the OEM will combine its newsletters into one. As a single quarterly newsletter, Partners in Preparedness will continue to help our private sector partners, community-based organizations and broader public sector agencies to prepare for emergencies and find ways to work together to serve the people of Toronto.
If you have already signed up to receive the private sector or community-based Partners in Preparedness newsletter, you will be added to the distribution list for the new newsletter. Organizations can sign-up to receive the newsletter here. The OEM will continue to post the newsletter on its Partners in Preparedness website.
Toronto Paramedic Services has developed an In Case of Emergency (ICE) information sheet to help people to share important medical details with paramedics and other health care providers in an emergency should they not be able to speak for themselves or remember important information.
Presently available in 18 languages, everyone should complete an ICE information sheet before a medical emergency. Paramedics can use the information on the sheet – such as a person’s medical history, medications, and allergies – to assess a patient’s condition and begin treatment faster. This information can also be used by someone calling 911 for help during a medical emergency, which will assist the emergency medical call taker in providing instructions on how to help the patient before paramedics arrive.
Cold weather brings special risks for older adults and seniors, such as an increased chance of falling or hypothermia. Many common diseases may further increase an older adult’s risk in cold weather. For example, individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia frequently have poor judgment. They may not complain about feeling cold and may not dress appropriately for the weather.
Toronto Public Health’s Vulnerable Adults and Seniors (VAS) team is a non-urgent service team composed of public health nurses who focus on adults over 55 years of age. The VAS team provides a range of services, from connecting clients with appropriate community services to conducting group education sessions to raise awareness on the impact of challenging living conditions on health.
Given the significant risks to older adults and seniors posed by cold weather, the VAS team provides presentations to community groups and service providers to share information on actions people can take to stay safe. To request a presentation, you can call Toronto Health Connection at 416-338-7600 or email Toronto Public Health at publichealth@toronto.ca.
When an emergency causes a lot of injuries or death, our healthcare system is often heavily impacted. Healthcare facilities can also become a gathering place for loved ones looking for friends and family. To prepare for these stressful situations, hospitals practice the activation and operation of their Family Information Support Centre (FISC). A FISC becomes a place for family and friends to gather while they wait for news of a loved one that is being treated in the hospital. In a large emergency, a FISC may also become a place where family and friends can reunite with loved ones who were previously unidentified or missing.
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, the largest trauma centre in Canada, recently held a FISC exercise to test this process. 95 participants came together as FISC workers and volunteer actors posing as concerned family and friends to simulate a mass casualty event where the public was starting to converge at the hospital. The scenario involved an explosion at a nearby college with very little additional information given to the participants on the impacts or the number of injured victims admitted to the hospital.
During the exercise, the FISC workers were able to test the process for registering family and friends, receiving and hosting these loved ones on site, and managing communications. During a debrief, participants shared positive feedback from their experiences as workers and simulated family and friends. Sunnybrook’s emergency preparedness staff will use the information gathered from the exercise to better lead the planning for a Toronto-wide mass casualty exercise scheduled for November 2019, which will include participants from many local hospitals and other organizations.
After taking a brief hiatus, the Toronto Emergency Management Symposium is returning in April 2020 for the 12th time. The Toronto Police Service leads the planning for the Symposium, which aims to provide critical infrastructure partners and other professionals working in the field of emergency management with information, knowledge and networking opportunities. Stay tuned for more details.
Mr. Charles Jansen started his new role as Director of the City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) on October 15, 2019.
Charles joins the OEM following a long and successful career as an emergency management and response professional with the Canadian Armed Forces where he earned the rank of Lt. Colonel and most recently served as the Director, 4th Canadian Division Headquarters.
Charles’ experience includes serving as the Chief Planner for Joint Task Force Central where he planned and led the response to a number of national and international events including the G8/G20 summits in 2010, multiple tours by the Royal Family and the 2015 Pan American Games. He also led the response to numerous emergencies including northern Ontario fire evacuations, the Highway 402 stranded motorist rescue in 2010 and natural disasters such as an F5 tornado and earthquake.
Charles is excited about working with Toronto’s critical infrastructure partners to strengthen our city’s readiness and resilience. He looks forward to hearing from you about ways that we can build partnerships based on effective collaboration, coordination and communication. You can reach Charles at charles.jansen@toronto.ca.
Uncertainty about high winds, precipitation, or electrical storms can jeopardize the enjoyment and safety of your special event. Fortunately, now more than ever, technology is helping event planners stay one step ahead of Mother Nature.
There are many applications on the market that predict when inclement weather will hit. These apps, ranging from general weather overviews to minute-by-minute forecasts of individual elements, can help your team plan a day that is safe and fun.
We surveyed event planners for some of their favourite weather forecast apps. The list below is not an endorsement but provides a sample of available apps to get you started in your search for the technology that fits your organization’s needs.
With winter rapidly approaching and extreme weather events becoming more frequent, emergency preparedness has never been more critical. To help prepare for the unexpected, Toronto Hydro encourages every household to assemble an emergency kit to help you get through at least 72 hours without essential services such as power, running water and transportation.
Some of the key items you should include in your kit are:
Don’t have an emergency kit? Toronto Hydro has created a series of Emergency Preparedness Hack videos to help you get through a power outage using everyday items. Visit its YouTube channel to find instructions on how to open a can without an opener, how to make an emergency lamp out of a plastic jug, and a flashlight, and more.
July 2019 Edition – Print Version
The City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management recently launched its Partners in Preparedness website with tools, resources and information to support organizations in preparing their employees, volunteers, services and facilities for emergencies.
In addition to sending out the Partners in Preparedness newsletters to people that have signed-up, the Office of Emergency Management also posts each issue on the website.
The website also includes links to the Office of Emergency Management’s new emergency preparedness videos. This video series aims to support Torontonians to take steps to be prepared for emergencies. There are five videos in total, covering the following topics:
You can continue to check out the Partners in Preparedness website for the links to the latest resources and information.
St. James Town is the largest high-rise community in Canada and one of the most densely populated neighbourhoods in Toronto. It is bound by Sherbourne Street to the west, Bloor Street East to the north, Parliament Street to the east and Wellesley Street East to the south.
St. James Town is a high turnover community, where newcomers to Canada make up a large portion of the population. St. James Town is a multicultural, multiethnic, multilinguistic neighbourhood.
The St. James Town Service Providers’ Network has more than 30 agencies that support collaborative partnerships, community engagement and an integrated service coordination approach in this neighbourhood. The Service Providers’ Network collaborates and coordinates with community members and stakeholders inside and outside the network to address the needs of residents and promote an inclusive and vibrant community. Under the umbrella of the Service Providers’ Network, there are seven subcommittees that provide a number of innovative programs and initiatives to support this neighbourhood such as:
The Corner and HASJT play an important role in supporting community members on a day-to-day basis. They also play an important role in supporting the community during emergencies.
For example, in January of this year, the high-rise apartment at 260 Wellesley Street East experienced a sudden power outage that left residents with no water, heat, or electricity for five days. The City of Toronto collaborated with a number of partners to respond to the residents’ basic needs and allow them to safely remain in the building. The Corner and HASJT took on a local leadership role that included supporting regular check-ins for some of the more vulnerable building residents and enhancing information sharing and communications.
Based on this recent experience, the St. James Town Service Providers’ Network is thinking of ways that it can help make the community more ready and resilient. It has developed a local crisis response protocol to coordinate the Network’s response and recovery activities. It has also developed the Know Your Neighbour(hood) booklet, a preparedness resource for community members that highlights steps they can take to be emergency ready. The St. James Town Service Providers’ Network will be hosting a community event this fall to launch the protocol and Know Your Neighbour(hood) booklet.
For more information about any of these initiatives, contact Nivedita Balachandran, Manager of Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement at The Corner at nbalachandran@stjamestown.org or Diana Mavunduse, Community Development Coordinator at Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services at diana.mavunduse@dixonhall.org.
Each year Toronto Fire Services runs Alarmed for Life, an information campaign to help community members understand what they can do to protect their families and homes from fire and carbon monoxide. The annual door-to-door campaign is directed at residents who live in single family homes, semi-detached houses and townhouses.
In Toronto, residential fires are usually started by cooking or smoking. The campaign highlights how people can stay safe:
The campaign began in late June and runs until early September. This year, Toronto Fire Services crews are focusing their visits on large-scale townhouse complexes within the Toronto Community Housing portfolio. They are delivering a fire safety kit directly to residents’ doorsteps. At the same time, residents can speak with firefighters about any concerns or questions.
The Alarmed for Life Home fire safety kit is available in 12 languages and can be downloaded from the City’s website.
The Downtown Yonge Business Improvement Area (BIA) represents businesses in one of the city’s most vibrant neighbourhoods, in an area bound on the south by Richmond Street, on the north by Grosvenor and Alexander Streets, on the west by Bay Street, and on the east by parts of Victoria, Bond and Church Streets.
The Downtown Yonge area is rich with commerce, culture, and tourism opportunities, as well as higher learning institutions and places for people to live. It is also a neighbourhood facing common urban challenges such as high numbers of residents experiencing mental health and addiction problems, chronic homelessness and poverty.
These social issues can impact individuals working in businesses in the area, as they typically have no training or support to help de-escalate the types of situations that someone high on drugs or intoxicated and grappling with mental illness could create.
The Downtown Yonge BIA has been working with a wide range of partners over past few years to put plans and strategies in place to help address these types of events. Some of these initiatives have included:
More recently, the Downtown Yonge BIA has developed the Community Engagement Team (CET) in partnership with Margaret’s. Launched in August 2018 as a pilot project through the BIA Innovation Fund, the CET is a dedicated two-person outreach team that operates from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week. This team is trained in de-escalation and mental health approaches and can be used as a first response resource when businesses owners are dealing with a person in distress that does not warrant a call to 9-1-1. In addition to their on-street engagements, the team has responded to 280 calls since it was created, many from smaller, street-front independent businesses that don’t have access to security teams like the larger shopping centres.
For more information about the CET pilot, contact the Downtown Yonge BIA at bia@downtownyonge.com or 416.597.0255.
Summer is now in full swing, with temperatures regularly climbing above 30°C. While it may seem like nothing but blue skies and sunshine, summer heat brings a host of unique risks that organizations should prepare for.
Are your staff or volunteers heat aware? Working in high temperatures can be dangerous and put individuals at risk of heat stroke or more serious consequences. When outdoors or in hot spaces, consider more frequent breaks, a reduced work pace, scheduling work for cooler parts of the day, and being prepared with water, sunscreen and hats. Training employees and volunteers on risks is important. Employers can learn more about working in extreme temperatures and their responsibilities on the Ministry of Labour website.
On hot days, it is also important to help those most vulnerable to heat stresses. Check on elderly friends, relatives and neighbours, especially those without air conditioning and/or taking medications that make them more susceptible to heat. People who are marginally housed or experiencing homelessness are also at increased risk. If you see someone in need of assistance, you can call 311 for street outreach assistance. As always, in an emergency call 911.
You can learn more about heat preparedness and ways to beat the heat at toronto.ca/keepcool.
Cities—similar to any individual or organization—are faced with two types of challenges: shocks and stresses. Shocks are sudden events that are immediate threats to wellbeing like natural disasters or loss of essential services. Stresses are chronic problems like economic inequality and housing shortages. To be resilient, we need to prepare to weather shocks and overcome stresses.
This year, the City of Toronto released Toronto’s first ever Resilience Strategy. The strategy is designed to help our city become a more equitable, liveable, prosperous and resilient place where every Torontonian can thrive. Actions in the Resilience Strategy are organized into three focus areas:
Each focus area contains a series of goals and specific actions, which are the most critical projects Toronto must undertake to achieve resilience. Specific priority actions are things like retrofitting apartment towers, making investments to combat flooding, and providing support and tools to residents to make their homes and communities more resilient.
You can learn more about resilience, the City of Toronto’s new Resilience Strategy, and what you can do to help your community thrive at toronto.ca/resilience.
The Province’s Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management has released two updated Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (HIRA) products:
Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management will adopt the new guidelines to its existing HIRA process. The HIRA is designed to help the City of Toronto and its partners to identify, understand, and evaluate the key hazards that have the potential to negatively impact residents, services and critical infrastructure.
Did you know that high school students can earn an Emergency Management & Preparedness certificate from the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA)?
Designed in partnership with local municipalities, TRCA has developed a full-day course that provides students with an overview of the basics of emergency management, such as the role of an emergency operations centre and the principles behind the Incident Management System. The course also emphasizes personal emergency preparedness, including how to develop a household plan. TRCA offers the course at the Claremont Nature Centre in Goodwood, Ontario.
For more information, visit TRCA’s Specialist High Skills Major Certificates webpage.
April 2019 Edition – Print Version
The City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management wants to thank everyone for your support of our new Partners in Preparedness newsletter for community-based organizations.
This quarterly newsletter will help you — our community-based partners, including non-profit organizations and faith-based groups — prepare for emergencies and harness opportunities to work together to serve the people of Toronto. Since sharing the first issue in March, we continue to have groups sign up for our distribution list.
Please help us promote this resource by sharing this issue of Partners in Preparedness within your networks. Organizations can sign-up to receive the newsletter.
You can contact the Office of Emergency Management to receive an accessible version of this newsletter by email at oem@toronto.ca.
Emergency Preparedness Week is an annual event encouraging Canadians to be prepared to protect themselves and their families during emergencies. This year, Emergency Preparedness Week runs from May 5 – 11.
While governments at all levels are working hard to keep Canada safe, everyone has a role to play in being prepared for an emergency; and being prepared means having the knowledge and equipment necessary to better cope during an emergency.
Emergency Preparedness Week encourages all Canadians to take three simple steps: know the risks, make a plan and prepare an emergency kit.
Emergency Preparedness Week is also a great opportunity for companies and organizations to ensure they are ready for an emergency. Your organization can use this event as an opportunity to kick start your emergency management program.
If you already have a program, you can work with your employees and volunteers to find ways to improve your organization’s emergency readiness. For example, you can take some time during Emergency Preparedness Week to review your plan to make sure it’s up-to-date, provide training to help staff get familiar with your organization’s emergency procedures or hold a drill to give everyone a chance to practice using the response procedures.
Here are some materials that you can use to promote Emergency Preparedness Week in your organization:
Alert Ready is Canada’s emergency alerting system designed to warn the public about dangerous events. Alert Ready delivers important alerts to Canadians through television, radio and LTE-connected and compatible wireless devices.
On May 8, Alert Ready will be tested in all provinces and territories. This test gives all Alert Ready partners information and feedback to improve the system. To learn more about this test, visit the Alert Ready website.
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre is Canada’s home for Stop the Bleed, a training program that provides people with the tools and knowledge to stop life-threatening bleeding.
Massive bleeding can result from a workplace injury, road collision or violent incident. A person can bleed to death in four to five minutes, so it is important to provide quick and appropriate support. Bystanders are often the first responders during an emergency — and the help given by an immediate responder can make the difference between life and death, even before professional first responders arrive on scene.
Stop the Bleed is an initiative of the American College of Surgeons, started in 2015 in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting. It aims to encourage bystanders to become trained, equipped and empowered to help in a bleeding emergency before professional help arrives.
In 2017, Sunnybrook became the first hospital in Canada to offer the training. So far, Sunnybrook has trained 1500 people, including the general public, high school students and people that work in major public venues and landmarks. Interest in the program continues to grow, especially after recent mass casualty events in Toronto.
Sunnybrook offers the course onsite at its Bayview campus on the fourth Tuesday of almost every month. Sunnybrook also offers private courses for companies, organizations and high school students. All courses are taught by regulated health care professionals. For more information on how to get trained, visit Sunnybrook’s Stop the Bleed website.
Mark your calendar.
May 2019 is the first ever Stop the Bleed Month; May 23 will mark the second annual Stop the Bleed Day.
Take this opportunity to spread the word about this important initiative with your employees and volunteers.
As extreme weather increases in frequency, it’s more important than ever to ensure Torontonians are prepared to handle the resulting dangers of severe storms. With Powerline Safety Week taking place May 13-17, Toronto Hydro, in partnership with the City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management, Toronto Police Service and the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), are educating the public about the dangers posed by downed powerlines, poles and trees.
Between April and September in 2018, five major storms swept through Toronto and the GTA causing downed trees and powerlines and leaving a combined total of 175,000 customers without power. As a result, approximately 1,215 downed wires and 354 downed poles were reported last year.
While extreme weather events are becoming more frequent, research shows public awareness about powerline safety has decreased. In a recent survey conducted by Toronto Hydro, only 35% of people correctly identified the minimum safe distance to keep back from a downed wire – which is 10 metres, or the length of a school bus.
It’s critical for the public to know that every downed wire should be treated as a live wire that can electrify the ground. If a downed powerline is encountered, it should be immediately reported to Toronto Hydro at 416-542-8000 and to 9-1-1. To raise awareness and educate people about powerline safety, Toronto Hydro trucks and TTC buses will be wrapped with eye-catching graphics as part of a new campaign called Downed Lines are Deadly. For more information about powerline safety, visit www.torontohydro.com/powerlinesafety.
Fire can break out anywhere, including where you work. Each year fires in the workplace cause injury and property loss.
If a fire started in the building where you work, would you know what to do? Do you know your workplace evacuation procedures in the event of an alarm? What can you do to prevent fires in your workplace?
Knowing the answers to these questions and following a few simple fire safety procedures can prevent tragic and wasteful fire loss in your workplace.
Below are tips to help you get prepared in your workplace. These procedures are based on your workplace having a fire alarm system and an approved fire safety plan. You should make it your business to know your organization’s fire safety plan and evacuation procedures.
Employees should know:
Employers are responsible for:
If your workplace is in a high-rise building, which is defined in the Ontario Building Code as buildings seven storeys or more in height, please visit the Toronto Fire Services’ High-Rise Fire Safety web page for more information.
Would you like to learn about more fire safety? You can have a Toronto Fire Services Public Educator visit your organization in the City of Toronto to share information about fire prevention, detection and escape. Email tfsPubEd@toronto.ca for more information.
The Office of Emergency is excited to announce the release of a new personal preparedness video. This video provides members of the public with tips on being prepared for emergencies, such as making a plan and preparing a kit. Stay tuned as the Office of Emergency Management launches more videos on important preparedness topics over the next few months.
By email at oem@toronto.ca
By phone at 416-392-4554
On Twitter at @TorontoOEM
March 2019 Edition – Print Version
The City of Toronto’s Office of Emergency Management launched the Partners in Preparedness newsletter for private sector partners in 2018. We have received great feedback about the newsletter and continue to have groups sign up for our distribution list.
We are now excited to share the first Partners in Preparedness newsletter for community-based organizations. This quarterly newsletter can help our community-based partners, including non-profit organizations and faith-based groups, prepare for emergencies and harness opportunities to work together to serve the people of Toronto. Topics will include updates on Toronto’s emergency management program and tips on emergency preparedness.
We want your help to highlight stories and innovative best practices from our community-based partners. Please share any ideas you have for newsletter articles at oem@toronto.ca.
Organizations can sign up for either newsletter.
Every year, Toronto Paramedic Services responds to over 2,000 cardiac arrests.
11-year-old Omar’s life was saved by a member of the public. He went into cardiac arrest while playing soccer and was successfully resuscitated by someone who performed CPR and used an AED while waiting for the paramedics to arrive. Learn more Omar’s story.
When a cardiac arrest happens, you may be able to save a life by doing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and using an automated external defibrillator (AED) until paramedics arrive. Early use of CPR and an AED can increase the chance of survival for someone experiencing a cardiac arrest by up to 75%.
Toronto Paramedic Services’ Safe City program can help your organization be emergency ready by teaching your staff and volunteers First Aid, CPR, and how to use an AED. Toronto Paramedic Services can also assist with all aspects of placing and maintaining AEDs in your workplace, including training, monitoring and registering the AED with 911.
Find out more about Toronto Paramedic Services’ Safe City program by emailing safecity@toronto.ca or calling 416-392-9833.
When emergencies happen, community members can face a range of challenges: disruption to your daily routine, stress and mental health impacts, and being displaced from your home are just a few potential consequences. Emergencies can disproportionately impact more vulnerable members of a community, such as older adults and individuals with mental health and cognitive challenges.
The City of Toronto works with a range of partners to deliver Emergency Social Services. These services include providing temporary accommodation, emergency food and clothing, and helping people reunite with loved ones. Vulnerable community members may face barriers to accessing these services, which can exacerbate the consequences they face.
The City’s Office of Emergency Management is working with community-based health providers to make a plan that responds to the complex needs of vulnerable community members. Gerstein Crisis Centre provides a 24-hour response and has taken on a coordinator role for additional support through a specialized health response plan, linking the City’s Emergency Social Services response with organizations that deliver services related to mental health, addictions, acquired brain injuries, developmental disabilities and vulnerable older adults.
When the City identifies a need for these specialized services during an emergency, it engages Gerstein Crisis Centre, who will respond or send the request for assistance to a network of partners. Gerstein Crisis Centre and these partners can:
The City has activated this process with great success over the past few years during a number of small and large-scale emergency responses.
In addition to Gerstein Crisis Centre, the City works with number of health providers to develop and implement the strategy for specialized health services during an emergency, including:
Every year, the Canadian Red Cross observes Red Cross Month in March and honours the humanitarian efforts of the global Red Cross Movement to prevent and alleviate human suffering.
As one of the most active non-governmental organizations in the country, the Canadian Red Cross is committed to responding to the needs of vulnerable people, including those who have been affected by emergencies. Across Canada, the Red Cross responds to an emergency every three hours.
The City has established a formal agreement with the Canadian Red Cross to ensure it has access to resources for supporting the needs of community members during times of emergency.
The agreement outlines a standardized approach for the Red Cross to support the City in providing Emergency Social Services during large-scale responses, including registration and inquiry, temporary accommodation, and assistance with accessing transportation, food, clothing and other community supports. The agreement also outlines how the City can work with the Red Cross to help Torontonians affected by smaller, more frequent incidents, such as when someone is displaced from their home due to a single-house fire.
In 2018, the Canadian Red Cross worked closely with the City during its response to several events. The largest response was the evacuation of the 650 Parliament Street high-rise due to a fire in August 2018, when the City activated its emergency operations centre for 28 days. The Canadian Red Cross supported the City in providing Emergency Social Services for these community members. Close to 1,400 individuals registered to receive services, with approximately 350 of these people needing emergency overnight accommodation.
The Canadian Red Cross can quickly respond to emergencies thanks to its network of 17,000 highly trained volunteers across the country. To find out more about joining the Red Cross team, visit redcross.ca/volunteer.
While we all eagerly await summer, the City of Toronto is already looking at ways to help residents keep cool when temperatures start to climb over the summer months. One of the easiest ways to avoid the health risks associated with summer heat is to find a place to cool down. In previous years, the City has had a Heat Relief Network made up of community centres, libraries and other public buildings where the public can cool off.
This year, the City of Toronto is expanding the Heat Relief Network by partnering with private and non-profit organizations. If your business has an accessible, air-conditioned indoor space that you can make available to the wider community throughout the summer season (May 15 – September 30), consider joining the City’s Heat Relief Network.
Your space will be featured in the City of Toronto’s interactive online map of Heat Relief Network locations and recognized as a neighbourhood resource for people looking to cool down.
As you consider this partnership, the City can work with you to address any questions and concerns. For more information, contact Toronto Public Health’s Sonya Bourgeois at 416-338-7443 or Sonya.Bourgeois@toronto.ca.
By email at oem@toronto.ca
By phone at 416-392-4554
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