Emergency Preparedness Week, which runs from May 5 - 11 this year, promotes safety and preparation to the public. This year, the theme is Plan for Every Season, highlighting the differences in emergencies between spring, summer, fall and winter.

Examples of seasonal emergencies could include flooding, major winter storms, forest fire smoke and tornados.

“It’s important that people have a plan to deal with an emergency in every season,” said Dennis Brescacin, Community Emergency Management Coordinator for the City of Thunder Bay.

“What may not be an issue in the summer could pose a definite hazard in an emergency in the winter.”

Thunder Bay Fire Rescue encourages people to learn about Emergency Plans and safety by following them on social media, including Instagram, X and Facebook.

The provincial and federal governments have several online resources to help the public plan for emergencies. They include:

New communications tools also make it easier to stay connected with reputable sources of information during an emergency. This includes receiving notifications from Emergency Management Ontario, and creating your own Emergency Preparedness Action Plan.