Brant County Declares State of Emergency

Thursday, 19 March 2020 13:28

The County of Brant has declared a State of Emergency.

BRANT COUNTY - The County of Brant has declared a State of Emergency.

Mayor David Bailey explains the reasoning behind the decision.

County of Brant, ON - Today, March 19, 2020 at 11:11 am, the County of Brant has declared a state of emergency.

"Today, March 19, 2020 at 11:11 am, the County of Brant has declared a state of emergency. We are working very proactively with the City of Brantford, Six Nations of the Grand River, Brant County Health Unit and the Brant Community Healthcare System. Cooperation between these organizations is happening daily to ensure we have a coordinated response to this emergency. We’ve made the decision to declare a state of emergency to demonstrate how serious we are about the evolving health emergency COVID-19 and to emphasize our commitment for the protection of health and safety of County residents. We also make this decision as a sign of our support to the Province of Ontario and Federal government. This situation is an extraordinary event requiring extraordinary measures. I want to assure the people of Brant that we are here for you. We will do everything in our power to help our community get through this health emergency and there is no need to panic. Please do your part and stay home if you can and practice social distancing if you must go out. I know the people of Brant are incredible, kind-hearted and helpful people. I know you will help each other, take care of your neighbours and be extraordinary. Because that is who you are. I will continue to provide you with updates as this situation evolves. As Mayor, I will certainly do anything in my power to support our residents, colleagues and neighbours through this time.”

The County of Brant has declared an Emergency today in support of the Province of Ontario's and the Government of Canada’s efforts to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Declaring an emergency under s 7.0.1 (1) of the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act provides the County of Brant with all options available to protect the health and safety of individuals and families living in the County.

For updates on services, visit our website www.brant.ca/COVID-19.

What does a State of Emergency Actually Mean:

The declaration of emergency does not dramatically change the situation, we are already following our emergency management plan;
It provides the municipality with certain legal protections, and also provides volunteers who may be involved in our response to this emergency with protection in the event we need to draw on volunteer resources in the coming days;
It provides the municipality with flexibility to suspend normal practices to facilitate decision making for the organization to respond to the emergency as it unfolds, if necessary;
It does not allow municipalities to “lock down” society or break laws or act outside of the normal municipal business;
The County will continue to look for guidance from Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health and the Brant County Health Unit on the steps it needs to take to help keep our residents safe, and the declaration puts us in a strong position to respond to the guidance provided by these agencies.