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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFD-3-99 ~ " '- . Meeting: Date: Report #: Subject: THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON REPORT GENERAL PURPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMIT'jrilillit yl(,. FD Res. # V)?n -:Yo. 99 JANUARY 18, 1999 By-Law # .3 9.File #: t'u- ~ 10.12.6 EMERGENCY PLANNING UPDATE Recommendations: It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1.) THAT Report FD-3-99 be received for information. Comments The intent of this report is to update Committee on the status of the emergency planning process within the Municipality of Clarington. This report will address the status of the Municipality's emergency plan, the Municipal Operations Centre, the CANATEX '99 exercise, the issues of Public Alerting as well as proposed training for Municipal staff. Municipal Emergencv Plan The Municipality's emergency plan was in the process of being updated in preparation for the CANATEX '98 exercise, which was to be conducted in April of 1998. This exercise was postponed due to various reasons, not the least of which was the ice storm last winter. This storm brought some concerns to light, that had to be addressed prior to any major exercise being conducted. At the time the exercise was still being planned for, the Municipality's emergency plan was in the process of being updated by a consultant, Jim Bruce. Mr. Bruce had been hired by Ontario Hydro to work with the local Municipalities to review plans and ensure they were in agreement ."""..1:\,..". F'PEH '<I1"EeYCLE THISISPAlmwC>\l~(~W;LmPA'm ':tuS Fd-3-99 -2- "'- with the new Provincial Emergency Plan [PNEP]. When the exercise was postponed, the contract for the consultant was ended and the work ceased. The plan had been completed to the point where it could function as a draft plan and this was shown with the need to activate the Municipal Operations Centre for the minor accident at Darlington Nuclear Generating Station last April. The plan continues to be reviewed by staff and will be completed and brought to Council for approval once it has been exercised and a final draft prepared. Municipal Operations Centre (MOC) The MOC is completed and ready for use if required. The centre was approximately 80% complete in April when the Darlington issue required its activation. The staff noted some minor requirements in the centre and these were addressed in large part during completion. There will be training conducted for those who will be required to operate the centre in any emergency prior to the CANATEX exercise, proposed for April of 1999. The training will be conducted by staff and hopefully, the consultant who may be provided by Ontario Hydro. CANATEX '99 The Province and Ontario Hydro are hoping to conduct an exercise to test the Provincial, Regional and Municipal plans as well as those of Ontario Hydro. This exercise will be referred to as CANATEX '99 and is proposed for April 27, 28 and 29, 1999. Municipal staff will be required to participate, at a yet to be determined level, for part of the 3 day exercise, the final details are still being prepared and Council will be made aware once they are in place. Public Alerting The issue of public alerting is one that still remains to be resolved. Dr.Young, the Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Emergency Measures Ontario, convened a meeting with the interested parties. Requirements for alerting and how best to address the concerns of the various parties, those being the Region of Durham and it's member Municipalities, the City of Toronto, Ontario Hydro and Emergency Measurers Ontario, were discussed. At the initial meeting of May 26,1998 several concerns were raised. As a result, staff of Emergency Measures Ontario and Ontario Hydro, along with representation from the Region and the City of Toronto, met to see if some common ground could be reached. '7u9 Fd-3-99 -3- . A follow up meeting was convened on December 15, 1998 to discuss the findings of the working group. It was obvious from the meeting, which was attended by the Municipality's Chief Administrative Officer and Fire Chief, that there was still no mutually agreed to resolution to the concerns. The main disagreement involves the public alerting area, i.e. 3 kilometers versus 10 kilometers. Dr. Young suggested that 3 options would be reviewed by staff of Emergency Measures Ontario and Ontario Hydro to decide on the practicality of the options as well as the related costs. Once this information is available, a subsequent meeting will be held to provide the interested parties with the information and future discussion. Dr. Young made it quite clear that the final decision regarding the options related to public alerting, would be made by Cabinet once the pertinent information has been made available to them. Training Staff has met with representatives from the emergency measures division of Ontario Hydro with the intent of obtaining consulting assistance to complete our review of the Municipality's Emergency Plan. Also, to conduct staff training in time for the proposed CANATEX '99 exercise. This training will involve information sessions as well as some practical training, which will take place at the MOC. If the consultant is not available, the training will be conducted by staff, to ensure readiness for CANATEX '99. Mr.Haynes suggested that, if a consultant were to be provided, it would be sometime in early February, in order to provide adequate time to finish the plan and conduct some training. A decision on this request, as well as a request for financial assistance towards the construction of the Municipal Operations Centre, was pending at the time the report was written. 710 FD-3-99 - 4 - ~ Recommendations: It is respectfully recommended that report FD-3-99 be received for information. Respectfully submitted, Reviewed by, '\ . / ) v-c~-z-Q __ (;. L___ '--' Franklin Wu, Chief Administrative Officer ~ 11