Emergency Management

What is an emergency?

“A situation or an impending situation that constitutes a danger of major proportions that could result in serious harm to persons or substantial damage to property and that is caused by the forces of nature, a disease or other health risk, an accident or an act whether intentional or otherwise.”
Source: Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (external link)

What is emergency management?

Most emergency incidents can be handled by first responders (police, fire, paramedics) but when an incident exceeds the capacity of responding agencies, emergency managers are required to help coordinate a multi-agency response. Emergency Management takes action to prepare Halton Region and its residents to build resiliency and be better able to respond to emergencies.

5 pillars of emergency management

There are five pillars of emergency management:

1. Prevention
   The actions taken to eliminate a hazard from occurring.
2. Mitigation
   The actions taken to reduce the impacts of a hazard.
3. Preparedness
   The measures taken prior to an emergency or disaster to ensure individuals and agencies are ready for an effective response.
4. Response
   The activities during or immediately after an incident to protect people, property, the environment and the economy and/or services.
5. Recovery
   The actions taken that restore a community as close to a pre-disaster state of functioning.

In order to initiate preventative, mitigative and preparedness activities, the Province of Ontario requires all municipalities and regions to complete a Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment (HIRA) that ranks the top ten hazards addressing the following:

• What hazards exist in the region?
• How frequently do they occur?
• How severe can their impact be on the community, infrastructure, property, and the environment?
• Which hazards pose the greatest threat to the community?

Legislation and regulation

Halton Region’s emergency management program is guided by three pieces of legislation:

• Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (external link)
• Ontario Regulation 380/04 (external link)
• Halton Region Emergency Response Plan (PDF file)

What is a declaration of emergency?

A signed declaration made in writing by the Head of Council of a Municipality in accordance with the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act. This declaration is usually based on a situation or an impending situation that threatens public safety, public health, the environment, critical infrastructure, property, and/or economic stability and exceeds the scope of routine community emergency response.
Source: Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (external link)

Halton Region’s role

The Halton Region Emergency Program and Plan details the roles and responsibilities of Regional Council and regional employees when responding to an emergency. The Halton Region Emergency Program and Plan is designed to facilitate a timely and effective response to and recovery from those hazards to which the Regional Municipality of Halton is particularly vulnerable. The Halton Region Emergency Program and Plan is reviewed annually to reflect the changes in the community and is practiced annually through training, drills and exercises to ensure employees know how to use the plan.
Source: Halton Region Emergency Response Plan (PDF file)

Partners and Stakeholders

Here is a list of Halton Region’s partners and stakeholders:

• Federal Government of Canada
  • Public Safety Canada (external link)
• Province of Ontario
  • Emergency Management Ontario (external link)
  • Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (external link)
  • Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (external link)
  • Ministry of Transportation (external link)
• Local Government
  • The City of Burlington (external link)
  • The Town of Oakville (external link)
  • The Town of Halton Hills (external link)
  • The Town of Milton (external link)
• First Responders
  • Halton Region Paramedic Services
  • Halton Regional Police Service (external link)
  • City of Burlington Fire Department (external link)
  • Town of Oakville Fire Department (external link)
  • Town of Halton Hills Fire Department (external link)
  • Town of Milton Fire Department (external link)
• Conservation Authorities
  • Conservation Halton (external link)
  • Credit Valley Conservation Authority (external link)
  • Grand River Conservation Authority (external link)
• Hospitals
  • Halton Healthcare Services (external link)
  • Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital (external link)
• Volunteer agencies
  • Canadian Red Cross (external link)
  • Salvation Army (external link)
  • St. John Ambulance (external link)
  • Canadian Mental Health Association (external link)
  • Halton Amateur Radio Club (external link)
• Professional Associations
  • International Association of Emergency Managers (external link)
  • Ontario Association of Emergency Managers (external link)
  • Disaster Recovery Institute of Canada (external link)
• School Boards
  • Halton District School Board (external link)
  • Halton Catholic District School Board (external link)