While Canada’s Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness was telling IBC delegates that Ottawa is committed to partnering on earthquake preparedness, Albertans in Banff were treated to a 2.7 magnitude quake.
Steven Blaney told the 150 delegates at
Insurance Bureau of Canada’s (IBC’s) National Earthquake Symposium in Vancouver, B.C. late Thursday that he is committed to partnering with stakeholders and the insurance industry to properly prepare for a major earthquake.
Ironically – or perhaps quite timely – a small 2.7 magnitude earthquake was recorded at 5:45 MT four kilometres southwest of Banff, shaking up residents but causing no damage or injuries.
It also ironically – or perhaps belatedly – followed on the heels of the Great British Columbia ShakeOut: a joint effort by the BC Earthquake Alliance and the IBC to hold Canada’s largest earthquake prepraredness drill at 10:16 a.m. MT.
Minister Blaney spoke about how collaborative earthquake preparedness efforts align with the Government of Canada’s shift towards placing a greater emphasis on prevention/mitigation and resilience, while still maintaining strong emergency preparedness, response and recovery networks.
“Preparing for an earthquake means acting now,” said Minister Blaney. “We need to build resilient communities that can better withstand and recover from the impacts of natural disasters and other emergencies.”
In his remarks at the end of the two-day event, IBC President and CEO Don Forgeron committed IBC to continuing to lead the national conversation on preparing Canada for an earthquake.
“It’s vital we get this right,” said Forgeron. “We owe it to all Canadians.”
Attendees to the invitation-only event were leaders in business, academia, government and emergency preparedness. Speakers included scientists, government representatives and insurers, including the chief executive of the Insurance Council of New Zealand who shared lessons learned from the 2011 Christchurch quake.
