Your Emergency Preparedness Guide | Security and Emergency Management Services | Seneca Students

Unfortunately, emergencies can and do happen. Natural disasters and human related events may be beyond our control, but there are ways to reduce the impact of those and whatever other emergency we might face. 

Emergency Preparedness Week (May 7-13, 2023) encourages all Canadians to take actions to be better prepared. This includes protecting yourselves and your families during emergencies. Every year, this special week is a national effort lead by Public Safety Canada, provincial and territorial emergency management organizations, Indigenous organizations, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector.

Being prepared at home is the first step to ensure you are able to respond to emergencies. Canada encourages every household to have an emergency kit. During an emergency, we will all need some basic supplies. We may need to get by without power or tap water. You should be prepared to be self-sufficient for at least 72 hours in an emergency. Create yours today using Your Emergency Preparedness Guide.

By taking a few other simple steps, you can become better prepared to face a range of emergencies – anytime, anywhere. It is important to: 

• Know the risks – Although the consequences of disasters can be similar, knowing the risks specific to our community and our region can help you better prepare.
• Make a plan – It will help you and your family know what to do

Scouts Canada’s free Emergency Ready program, offers youth and families tips, checklists and skills to prepare for safe response to potential hazards and conditions at home or in the community. We have attached the following resources to this article to get you started! 

• a Checklist to create an emergency kit,
• an Emergency contact checklist,
• and Safety Tips for emergencies.

Just like being prepared at home, you need to be prepared at work as well. 

We encourage you to contact Sulakshan Sabaratnam, our Emergency Management Coordinator to learn about emergency response at Seneca and how we work with our internal and external partners to maintain a high level of preparedness. 

Invite us to attend your next departmental or employee meeting to talk about our department and how you can be prepared for incidents on campus.

For Seneca resources: Visit and familiarize yourself with the Seneca Emergency Response Guide. The guide provides specific guidance for emergencies that is critical to the safety and security of the Seneca community.

For at home resources: Visit www.getprepared.ca or https://www.ontario.ca/beprepared to help you and your family prepare for all types of emergencies at home.

This week, do something that helps you to be better prepared. It may be creating a 72 hour kit at home, reading Seneca's emergency plans, finding the emergency exits or AED's on campus, any step is a good step. By doing your part we can be better prepared. 

Experience has shown that individual preparedness goes a long way to help people cope better - both during and after a major disaster.