Emergency preparedness

• feeding items:
  • breastfeeding aides
  • formula
  • bottles
  • baby food
  • extra water
• diapers, wipes and extra clothes
• prenatal vitamins, ointments and medications for mom and child (over-the-counter and prescription)

• tire patch kit or can of seal-in-air product to repair flat tires on your wheelchair or scooter
• supply of inner tubes
• pair of heavy gloves to protect your hands while wheeling over glass or other sharp debris
• latex-free gloves for anyone providing personal care to you
• spare deep-cycle battery for a motorized wheelchair or scooter
• a lightweight, manual wheelchair as a backup to a motorized wheelchair, if possible
• spare catheters, if needed
• your power outage backup plan

If you have severe allergies, chronic medical conditions or other medical needs, you will want to include the necessary supplies. For example, if you have diabetes you will want to include the following:

• MedicAlert bracelet or identification
• extra supply of insulin or oral agent
• pump supplies, syringes, needles and insulin pens
• small container for storing used syringes and/or needles
• blood glucose testing kit, spare batteries and record book
• supply of blood glucose and urine ketone testing strips and fast acting insulin for high blood glucose, if needed
• fast acting sugar for low blood glucose
• extra food to cover delayed meals
• ice packs and thermal bag to store insulin
• additional snacks to maintain blood glucose

If you have pets, you will want to include the necessary supplies, such as the following:

• pet carrier
• food
• extra water
• extra collar,or harness and leash
• blankets/towels
• medication
• copies of vaccination records, identification tags and insurance information

View an emergency kit checklist for pets

Alert Ready

Alert Ready is Canada’s national alerting system. It automatically sends life-saving emergency alerts through television, radio and compatible mobile devices.

Check if your cell phone is compatible with Alert Ready.

Alberta Emergency Alert

Alberta Emergency Alert is Alberta's emergency alerting system. Communities, including Leduc County, can issue emergency alerts to notify citizens of a potential or ongoing emergency and provide instructions for what you should do to stay safe.

These alerts are broadcast on television and radio. You should download the mobile app to receive notifications to your mobile device.

Download the Alberta Emergency Alert app on your smartphone or tablet from the Apple Store or Google Play store, or text FollowAB_EmergAlert to 21212 to receive text notifications.

Fire advisories, restrictions and bans are issued when the fire hazard rating has increased and restrictions are needed to protect the community and prevent urban fires and/or wildfires.

If a fire advisory, restriction or ban is issued in Leduc County, we will post that information to leduc-county.com/fire-bans. We also use share this information on Alberta Fire Bans; call Alberta Fire Bans information line at 1-866-FYI-FIRE (1-866-394-3473).

Download the Alberta Fire Bans app on your smartphone or tablet from the Apple Store or Google Play store.

Alberta Parks is responsible for issuing fire advisories, restrictions and bans in provincial parks.

The Alberta Wildfire website has the latest updates on the status of all wildfires burning in Alberta. Report a wildfire by calling toll-free to 310-FIRE (310-3473).

Download the Alberta Wildfire app on your smartphone or tablet from the Apple Store or Google Play store.

Flood and ice advisories, watches and warnings are issued by the Government of Alberta. They are issued when weather or river forecasts suggest a provincial waterway could flood. These notifications are referred to as any of the following:

• high streamflow and spring runoff advisory
• flood watch
• flood warning
• ice advisory and spring runoff advisory
• ice jam watch
• ice jam warning

Download the Alberta Rivers app on your smartphone or tablet from the Apple Store or Google Play store.

Health advisories are issued when there is a risk to the general population or more at-risk populations, like children, seniors and those with certain health conditions. Health advisories are issued by Alberta Health Services. These advisories include air quality advisories, heat advisories, blue-green algae advisories, boil water advisories and more.

View active health advisories issued by Alberta Health Services.

Weather advisories – including heat warnings, extreme cold warnings, snowfall warnings, tornado watches and more – are issued by Environment and Climate Change Canada when severe weather poses a threat to Canadians.

View active weather advisories.

Download the Weathercan app on your smartphone or tablet from the Apple Store or Google Play store.

Individuals and families should be prepared to take care of themselves for a minimum of 72 hours during an emergency and should also understand the basic principles of first aid and safety.

First responders, such as police, paramedics and firefighters, are normally the first to respond to an emergency. They, in conjunction with local municipalities, are responsible for managing most local emergencies.

Municipalities

Local governments are responsible for making sure their communities are prepared for emergencies. Leduc County maintains a municipal Emergency Management Plan that details steps to be taken in the event of an emergency or disaster in Leduc County.

A major emergency mutual-aid agreement is in place between all municipalities located within Leduc County boundaries to ensure adequate resources are available in an emergency. The county also works closely with Edmonton International Airport and Alberta Emergency Management Agency and is an active member of the Capital Region Emergency Planning Partnership. 

In Alberta, the Alberta Emergency Management Agency is the coordinating agency for emergency management activities and initiatives. It monitors the province for porential emergencies and disasters on a 24/7 basis.

Federal departments and agencies support provincial and/or territorial emergency management organizations. They also manage emergencies that involve areas of federal jurisdiction, such as nuclear safety, national defence and border security.

Non-government organizations, such as the Canadian Red Cross, St. John Ambulance and The Salvation Army, play an important role in emergency management, including disaster prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.

• Close and lock windows and exterior doors. Close window shades, blinds, or curtains.
• Turn off fans, heating and air conditioning. Close the fireplace damper.
• Get your emergency kit and make sure the radio is working.
• If you don’t have a hardwired phone, gather a cell phone and charger.
• Call your emergency contact.
• Go to an interior room above ground level, without windows if possible. Above-ground locations are safer as some chemicals are heavier than air and seep into basements even if windows are closed.
• Keep your pets with you along with food and water.
• Use duct tape and plastic sheeting, or wet towels, to seal cracks around doors and vents.
• Listen to radio or TV and check the Alberta Emergency Alert app until you’re told the danger has passed or you’re told to evacuate.

• If you are close to your home, office or a public building, get inside immediately and follow the recommendations detailed in the "at home" section above.
• If you can’t get to a building, pull over and stop in the safest place possible. If it’s sunny, stop in the shade to avoid overheating.
• Turn the engine off. Close windows and vents. If possible, seal them with duct tape.
• Listen to radio for updates and instructions.
• Stay where you are until it’s safe to go.

• Lock all doors, windows and openings. Close window shades, blinds or curtains.
• Keep customers/visitors inside with you.
• Ask everyone to call their emergency contacts to tell them their location.
• Turn on call-forwarding and answering systems. Change voicemail recordings to say the business is closed and everyone is staying inside until it’s safe outside.
• Ensure employees know how to turn off fans, heating and air conditioning systems. Turn off systems that automatically exchange inside air with outside.
• Gather non-perishable food, bottled water, battery-powered radios, first-aid supplies, flashlights, batteries, duct tape, plastic sheeting and garbage bags.
• Go to interior room(s) above ground floor, with the fewest windows or vents. Large rooms without exterior windows work well. Avoid rooms with mechanical equipment like ventilation blowers or pipes that may be difficult to seal off.
• If you don’t have a hard wired phone, bring a cell phone and charger.
• Use duct tape and plastic sheeting, or wet towels, to seal cracks around the door(s) and vents into the room.
• Write down everyone’s name and call your business’s designated emergency contact.

Remain on your property with your animals until the emergency passes or gets resolved. Decide whether to confine the animals in an available shelter or leave them outdoors.

In case of flooding, ensure that your animals can be moved to high ground and have access to feed and clean water.

An outdoor sheltering location should:

• Avoid places that have overhead power lines or poles.
• Have no debris or sources of blowing debris.
• Have access to at least three days of food and clean water for your animals.
• Have adequate and safe fences that will maintain control of the animals.

Evacuation alerts

Evacuation alerts warn the public of a potential or current threat. If an evacuation alert is issued, do the following:

• Plan to evacuate with enough items to keep your family comfortable for a minimum of 72 hours.
• Keep the radio on all day and tuned to a local station. Have a battery-powered radio ready in case of power failure.
• Download the Alberta Emergency Alert app to stay up-to-date.
• Keep in touch with absent household members and ensure that a plan is in place if evacuation orders are given.

Evacuation orders are mandatory and issued for public safety. If an evacuation order is issued, do the following:

• Vacate your home when authorities advise you to do so. Ignoring these instructions could jeopardize the safety of your family and/or those rescuing you.
• Bring your pet(s) with you. Pet owners should determine where they will bring their pets ahead of time, as not all emergency reception centres accept pets. Owners can contact their veterinarian for a list of preferred boarding kennels, ask a local animal shelter if they provide emergency shelter, identify hotels outside of the immediate area that accept pets or ask friends or family outside the immediate area if they would be willing to take in a pet.
• Take your emergency kit with you.
• Follow the routes specified by officials. Do not take shortcuts as they could lead to a blocked or dangerous area.
• Drive carefully with headlights on. Make way for pedestrians and emergency vehicles.
• Stop at the pre-determined marshaling point(s). Report to authorities and wait for further instructions. Do not leave again without informing officials.
• Do not return to your property until permitted to do so by authorities.
• If time permits, leave a note informing others when you left and where you went. If you have a mailbox, leave the note in there.
• Shut off water and electricity if you are asked to by an officials.
• Leave natural gas service on, unless officials tell you otherwise. If you turn off the gas, the gas company has to reconnect it. In a major emergency, it could take weeks for a professional to respond. You would be without gas for heating and cooking.
• If the evacuation occurs in the winter, take extra precautions.
  • Turn off the water and then drain the water from your plumbing system.
  • Starting at the top of the house, open all taps, and flush toilets several times.
  • Go to the basement and open the drain valve.
  • Drain your hot water tank by attaching a hose to the tank drain valve and running it to the basement floor (if you have a gas-fired tank, the pilot light should be turned out - call the local gas supplier to re-light it).
  • Protect the valve, inlet pipe, and meter or pump with blankets or insulation material.

Plan ahead and work with your community to determine what safe shelters are available for farm animals. Keep in mind your animals may be evacuated to a centralized location and will comingle with other animals. Always ensure the following:

• You have sufficient feed and medical supplies available or can be delivered.
• Your animals have sufficient identification.
• Minimize contact among animals from different premises.
• Feed and water is protected from contact with wild animals and birds.
• Health and vaccination status of animals has been verified.
• You can handle death in a manner that minimizes the possible spread of contagious diseases.
• You have arranged for special provisions (milking, for example).

Protect yourself and your family first. There may be circumstances where the risk to life is great, but there is not enough time to evacuate your animals. After ensuring the safety of yourself and your family, if it is safe to do so and time permits, do the following:

• Open gates between pens and pastures to give the animals more room to escape the hazard.
• Put extra feed and water out where the animals can get to it, as it may be a few days before you are allowed to return home.
• Consider turning off power and natural gas to reduce the chance of these utilities causing additional problems while you are gone.