Emergency Preparedness
During an emergency, you and your family could be on your own for an extended period of time. Emergency services may not be readily available, as increasing demands are placed on responders. It may take emergency workers some time to get to you as they help those in most critical need. Be prepared to cope on your own for at least seven days in an emergency.
During an evacuation order, specific facilities will be designated as receptions centres for evacuees requiring assistance. Public information will include the location of the nearest reception centre and further instructions for registering for Emergency Support Services once the location and nature of the emergency has been identified.
How to Prepare for Emergencies
This guide will help you prepare for a large scale emergency.
The Household Emergency Plan is a resource that provides you with useful planning tips and a ‘fill in the blank’ template to create your own household emergency plan.
This list includes typical components of a do-it-yourself emergency preparedness kit to help keep your family safe.
This brochure provides information on what to do during an evacuation alert.
The ”In It Together: Neighbourhood Preparedness” guide will help you join forces with your neighbours so you know what to do, who to check in on and what resources are available should disaster hit.
Please make sure that your home address is visible from the street regardless of whether it is day or night. This will ensure that emergency responders are able to locate you quickly and not waste any time searching for your home.
For non-emergencies on the Sunshine Coast, please contact the following:
Ambulance – 604-885-5191
Fire Department – go to the front of your phone book for a facility in your area.
Police – 604-885-2266
Sechelt Hospital – 604-885-2224
During an emergency, you and your animal companion(s) may be on your own for several days, and your pets will be relying on you to help them through it. Preparing for your pets is just as important as preparing for the human members in your household.
Power outages can happen for a variety of reasons, such as bad weather, motor vehicles accidents and even animals interfering with our equipment. Depending on the cause, some can be restored very quickly, while others can last a few hours, or even a few days in the event of a major storm or emergency.
On hot, humid days, your body has to work harder to maintain a normal temperature. You may find yourself breathing rapidly, feeling weak, faint, confused, or headachy. Heat stroke and heat exhaustion can follow and hot temperatures can also worsen existing health conditions. Find out what to do before, during and after an extreme heat event.
In recent years, British Columbia has experienced a range of large-scale disasters, including extreme weather events, floods, and wildfires.
This has prompted many Sunshine Coast residents to ask important questions, such as:
- What are local governments doing to prepare for a major emergency?
- How can I best prepare for a major emergency in our region? and
- What should I do if a major emergency occurs on the Sunshine Coast?
This document provides the essential information you need to answer those questions, as well as guidance on where to find more detailed information on these topics.