Bruce County Updates Emergency Response Plan

The Bruce County Emergency Management Program is pleased to announce the launch of the updated Bruce County Emergency Response Plan. While Bruce County is a safe place to live, work and play, emergencies can happen anywhere and at any time. Bruce County, through its Emergency Management Program, is responsible for ensuring County response to an emergency is effectively coordinated. The Bruce County Emergency Response Plan describes how the County coordinates with lower-tier municipalities and external partner organizations, to respond to emergencies before they happen, during the emergency, and afterwards for recovery.

Emergencies threaten public safety, public health, the environment, property, continuity of government operations, critical infrastructure, and economic stability. It is not a matter of "if" there will be an emergency, it is a matter of "when" there will be an emergency.

Effective emergency management in Bruce County requires a coordinated response between many different types of organizations, including:

• Lower-tier municipalities;
• First Nation communities;
• Emergency Response organizations (i.e., police, fire, etc.);
• Other public sector organizations (i.e., school boards, hospitals);
• Private industry including critical infrastructure owners and operators;
• Neighbouring Counties; and
• Non-governmental organizations

Building from the newly updated Emergency Response Plan, the Emergency Management team has a robust training and exercise program for identified County Staff. Training and exercises are legislated pieces of Emergency Management and are an important part of developing skills, knowledge, and resources to deal with an emergency. The Bruce County Emergency Management Program runs an exercise for staff yearly at minimum and provides ongoing training throughout the year.

"The Bruce County Emergency Response Plan outlines how Bruce County will coordinate not only a County-level response to an emergency, but it also outlines how we will work to prevent, mitigate, and prepare for many types of emergencies. The plan also addresses how the County will assist in the recovery efforts post-emergency," said Ray Lux, Bruce County Emergency Management Coordinator. "Our goal is to ensure that Bruce County is safe, practiced, and prepared for an emergency and that we can respond in a coordinated and proactive manner ensuring a successful recovery. The newly updated Bruce County Emergency Response Plan lays a foundation for that work."

Discover more about Emergency Preparedness at www.brucecounty.on.ca/getprepared