People in this area will get their first taste of a new emergency preparedness tool on May 6th.
“Alert Ready” is a nation-wide emergency broadcast system.
The first test on Coast FM is at 1:58pm, Wednesday May 6th.
Chris Duffy is with Emergency Management BC. He says to start they’ll be the only agency that can trigger the automated alerts on TV and radio stations.
The plan for the future is to make it possible for police and local government authorities to trigger the alerts as well.
Of course, this is Emergency Preparedness Week, and local emergency planners are getting the word out.
Karen Lindsay is Nanaimo’s emergency program manager, she says the City has its own alert system that residents can sign up for.
Sunshine Coast emergency program coordinator Bill Elsner says it’s also important to set up a way to stay in touch as a family.
Elsner says another key message for our area is about supplies.
While 72 hours worth is the usual advice, in ferry dependent communities people should have one week’s worth on hand.
There are plenty of on line resources to help you prepare, including a new website set up by the federal government: getprepared.gc.ca
