CUMBERLAND – BC NDP MLAs Ronna-Rae Leonard and Josie Osborne say people in the Comox Valley will be safer during emergencies, with provincial funding that will better equip their local Emergency Operations Centres.

“When emergencies happen, people want to know their community will be resilient and able to bounce back while supporting people,” said Ronna-Rae Leonard, MLA for Courtenay-Comox. “By supporting this resiliency project, we’re creating safer communities that can deal with challenges that come their way.”

The Comox Valley Regional District is receiving $150,000 for a multi-jurisdictional Emergency Operations Centre resiliency project, working alongside Courtenay, Comox, and Cumberland as regional partners.

“While we hope we’ll never have to use emergency plans and equipment, they are absolutely essential to have in place to keep our families and communities safe,” said Josie Osborne, MLA for Mid Island-Pacific Rim. “This funding will help people in our region be safer and make the community more resilient.”

Through the Community Emergency Preparedness Fund (CEPF), the province is providing $1.4 million to 29 local governments and First Nations for emergency preparedness, including new supplies for local Emergency Operations Centres and training exercises to support staff and increase efficiency.

The province has invested $369 million into the CEPF since it was established in 2017. More than $224 million has been provided to First Nations and local governments through the CEPF for more than 2,000 projects. More than half of this funding has gone to communities since December 2022, demonstrating the province’s commitment to ramping up defences against climate emergencies throughout B.C. Approximately $16.3 million has been invested to support local Emergency Operations Centres.

Learn more: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024EMCR0036-001139