Emergency Preparedness
Emergency Preparedness
The BC Emergency Management Framework provides a unified structure to support tourism partners and visitors on matters related to the four pillars of emergency management; namely, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS GUIDES
Emergency Resources for BC’s Tourism Industry
During times of stress and uncertainty, it is important to share information from official sources only. There are a variety of resources available to help you prepare for emergencies, gather up-to-date information and help visitors plan their travel.
PreparedBC: Tourism Resources
Step-by-step guides to prepare businesses and their staff for emergencies, with templates and tools to help operators easily plan a fast and effective response.
- PreparedBC Public Emergency Preparation and Recovery
- PreparedBC Guide for Tourism Operators
- PreparedBC Emergency Plan
EMERGENCY RESOURCES
Emergency Info BC
Information about emergencies in BC, including evacuation orders and alerts.
Drive BC
Information about road closures, major events, and transportation delays.
Floods | River Forecast Centre
Analyses snow pack, assesses seasonal water supply and flood risk, and predicts flows in BC’s rivers and streams. It produces a range of bulletins, maps and warnings to inform emergency managers and the public about current and upcoming streamflow conditions.
Wildfire | BC Wildfire Service
Report wildfires to *5555 on a cell or 1 800 663-5555 toll-free.
Parks & Recreation Sites | BC Parks
Information on warnings and closures for provincial campgrounds & parks as well as recreation sites and trails
Weather Alerts | Environment Canada
Resource for the latest weather information, statements, and air quality advisories.
Emergency Social Services
Information regarding emergency reception centres and assistance.
Support for the displaced, and group lodging
Red Cross
Community news, training and certification, support resources
Evacuees can register with the Red Cross by calling 1-800-863-6582
The Great BC ShakeOut | BC Earthquake Alliance
Every third Thursday of October, a locally driven earthquake drill takes place at 10:20am. It provides an opportunity to practice earthquake protocols to ensure safety should an earthquake ever occur. If you have yet to participate – resources and valuable tools have been developed by the BC Earthquake Alliance.
A comprehensive guide developed by the BC Earthquake Alliance supports the tourism industry and businesses in their earthquake drills and safety protocols and includes considerations for staff, for residents and for visitors.
What Tourism Business Owners Can Do:
Share these resources with your staff and follow key social media accounts for the latest news.
Help your guests:
If your business is located in an impacted area, provide your current customers and future reservations with regular updates, by directing them to official information sources.
f your business is not impacted directly, help your current guests plan the rest of their trip to areas that are safe and open for business (your local visitor centre has a wealth of information on places to stay and things to do).
If your business is not impacted directly, be proactive with future reservations—let your customers know it’s business as usual and you are looking forward to hosting them. British Columbia is a very large province and sometimes our out-of-province guests can get confused by geographically misleading information.
See BC Parks website for most up to date information.
The B.C. River Forecast Centre reports, “Disturbances such as fire affect the hydrologic response of streams, rivers and lakes relevant to potential flooding. Specifically, flows from snowmelt dominated watersheds impacted by fires tend to be greater and peak earlier as compared to undisturbed areas, even under normal weather conditions. Many of the regions affected by burns last summer have above normal snow packs this year.”
If you are experiencing flooding issues that affect your home or business, please call the Provincial Emergency Reporting Line at 1-800-663-3456.
