Emergency Management Organizations Portal

Community Emergency Planning

Community Emergency Plans outline the actions of community governments, which are the first level of support for residents during emergency events such as floods and wildfires that threaten communities. The Emergency Management Act requires all community governments in the NWT to:

  • Have a Local Emergency Management Organization (EMO) with coordinator
  • Have a Community Emergency Plan
  • Update, validate and submit the Community Emergency Plan annually

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Developing/updating plans

There are several ways a community government can develop or update its Community Emergency Plan:

Community Emergency Plan Workshops

The Department of Municipal and Community Affairs (MACA) has developed the Community Emergency Planning Workshop to assist community governments and their Local EMOs to better understand the emergency management system in the NWT and to develop or update their community emergency plan. It will also ensure community leaders develop a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities during emergency events. Most importantly, it prepares the community for response to emergency situations.

For more information about the workshop please see the Community Emergency Planning brochure. 

Please reach out to your MACA regional office if you have questions, or if you would like to book a workshop for your community.

Community Emergency Plan Template

While MACA EMO staff offer community governments support through Community Emergency Planning workshops upon request, we recognize some community governments may wish to take a self-directed approach to developing or updating their community emergency plan on an annual basis. To assist, MACA EMO staff have developed a Community Emergency Plan template and accompanying instruction sheet.

If you have any questions or concerns about using this template, assistance can be provided from the Regional Emergency Management Coordinator in your MACA Regional Office.

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Practicing plans

A tabletop exercise is a discussion-based, low-stress way to help update and improve your emergency plan and response capacity. Tabletop exercises simulate an emergency in which members of the Local EMO perform the tasks that would be expected of them in a real emergency.

Tabletop exercises help to:

  • Clarify roles and responsibilities
  • Validate plans, train staff and test procedures/ policies
  • Identify gaps in planning
  • Improve inter-organizational coordination and communications
  • Identify gaps in resources and training
  • Exercise teamwork and improve effective communications
  • Encourage interaction and cooperation 
  • Identify resources

If you would like assistance in practicing an element in your Community Emergency Plan then we would like to hear from you. Upon request from a community government, MACA is available to develop a tabletop scenario that focuses on an event of your choice that Local EMOs can use independently, or MACA staff can facilitate.

Tabletop Exercise Workshop

If you would like MACA to facilitate a tabletop exercise workshop with your Local EMO, here is what you can expect:

  • We will develop a relevant and focused discussion-based scenario to run through (floods, evacuation, hosting etc.)
  • We can organize virtually or in person as time allows
  • We will guide your team through the exercise
  • Tabletop exercises generally take just 2-3 hours of your Local EMO’s time
  • We can generate a final report providing recommendations for your plan update

Please reach out to your MACA regional office if you have additional questions, or would like to book a tabletop exercise for your Local EMO to practice.

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EMO Resources

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Other Resources

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