B.C.'s emergency alerts expanding to include threats from floods, wildfires
B.C. is expanding the use of its wireless emergency alerts to include imminent threats from floods and wildfires, the province's public safety minister announced Tuesday.
Mike Farnworth announced the change while giving an update on the upcoming flood and fire season.
"We're finding our province at risk like never before from the effects of climate change," Farnworth said during a news conference. "In many ways, British Columbia is on the front lines of climate change in Canada and it's clear we all need to do more to keep our communities safe."
The notifications come through Alert Ready, a national system used to improve public safety in the event of emergencies. Currently, they're used in B.C. for tsunami warnings and Amber Alerts.
The alerting system is ready to be used for imminent flood risk and will be expanded by early June to include wildfire threats.
Farnworth said the province is planning on setting up a process for extreme heat events, adding work is underway with the Ministry of Health.
The official opposition welcomed the expansion while wondering what’s taking so long.
“We have no idea why the government has taken so long to implement it for fires and floods,” Liberal critic Todd Stone told CTV News.
He said the national system has been around since 2015.
“It's a bit of a headscratcher as to why the government didn't announce they're going to use the alert ready system for other types of severe weather like that heat dome,” Stone added.
Nearly 600 people died in oppressive heat and many wondered if enough was done to warn people about the risks.
Last year, the province also faced significant criticism for not using the emergency-alert system during a series of catastrophic storms that closed highways and flooded several parts of the province.
An electronic alert wasn't sent out even when homes were evacuated in Abbotsford.
"We didn’t want to alarm the whole city," Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun said at the time. "It was our decision not to activate the provincial Alert Ready system for the whole city of 162,000 people at that time as we wanted to directly contact the 300 people who live in Sumas Prairie."
Farnworth also expressed reservations about using the system in November.
"What you're going to be doing is in fact broadcasting to a larger area and (causing) the potential for panic and putting strain on emergency resources, which are working overtime and round-the-clock to deal with the situation," he said last fall.
A test alert will be sent out on Wednesday at 1:55 p.m. During that test, an alert will be broadcast on radio and TV stations. It'll also be sent out on compatible cellphones.
The text on those tests will read: "This is a TEST of the British Columbia Emergency Alerting System, issued by Emergency Management British Columbia. This is ONLY a TEST. If this had been an actual emergency or threat, you would now hear instructions that would assist you to protect you and your family. For further information, go to: www.emergencyinfobc.gov.bc.ca. This is ONLY a TEST, no action is required."
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Penny Daflos
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW 'Oh my God, you're my brother': Manitoba man discovers six unknown siblings
After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
No refund for travellers who cancelled flight already scrapped by airline: regulator
Four years on, the controversy over whether airlines owed refunds to passengers after cancelling hundreds of thousands of flights during the pandemic continues to simmer, aggravated by a sluggish, opaque complaints process.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Canucks hold off Oilers for 4-3 win in Game 3
Brock Boeser had two goals and an assist, and the Vancouver Canucks hung on for a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Man fatally 'slashed in the neck' in downtown Toronto, suspect outstanding
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
WATCH Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise's disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Canada Post cracks down on Nunavut loophole to get free Amazon Prime shipping
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.