City seeking volunteers for Emergency management team

It’s always good to have an emergency plan, and the City of Meadow Lake is looking for volunteers to help play important roles in crucial times of need.

This week, Community Safety Officer Joe Hallahan sent out a letter asking community groups and individuals to sign up for a number of posts for a reception centre, including food preparation, registration and inquiry, waiting area coordinators, congregate lodging for city and private facilities, logistics and supply volunteers, donation sorting, greeters, scribes and security.

“If the city was to ever declare a local state of emergency, or if the province said the city was an official housing area for other areas, the city would be called to set up a reception centre,” he said. “Since we’re a fairly small city, we’ll need to rely on volunteers quite heavily.”

Once the city establishes a group of volunteers, they will set up various training sessions, including ones with the Red Cross.

He said it’s important that the city be as fully prepare as possible, and the training will involve various scenarios. He said volunteers would be brought up to speed on the instant command system, which the provincial government provides training for.  

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“It’s important to have a plan in place, because in an emergency situation, you can’t be thinking an implementing things on the fly, you have to have a plan in place that works and that everyone knows so they can be coordinated.”

Hallahan said the city is hoping to kickstart the initiative in early 2018.

“Right now, we’re looking for as many people as possible to put their names forward,” he said. “We hopefully be compiling them by mid-January, and scheduling some training after that so that we can get the ball rolling.”

kathy.gallant@jpbg.ca  

On Twitter @ReporterKath