Emergency 14

Chapados is doing a virtual walkthrough of the COVID-19 isolation centre she’s worked to set up for members of the five Nations that make up the Kee Tas Kee Now Tribal Council. On the other end of the line is the Canadian Red Cross. A two-person team made up of experts in emergency response and health. This is the Help Desk for Indigenous Leadership in action.
 

As COVID-19 infection numbers began to rise earlier this year, it quickly became evident how serious the situation was as workplaces and schools were forced to shut their doors. No one could have predicted the challenges and emotional hardships faced by teachers, parents and guardians, and children. Now, as everyone prepares for a new school year, new challenges have surfaced, leading to uncertainty about what lies ahead.
 

Since well before the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Canadian Red Cross has been present in countries aroundthe world, working with local Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to strengthen their response to natural disasters and health emergencies. However, with the arrival of COVID-19, 2020 has become an unprecedented year and has led to a shift in our work from an international to a more domestic focus. 

With the Red Cross for over a dozen years, I have been deployed to the scene of unimaginable emergencies many times, including the Lac-Mégantic railway tragedy, the Fort McMurray wildfire, the recent floods in Eastern Canada and to Montreal to welcome many Syrian refugees. Unfortunately, I understand too well the plight of people confronted with extraordinary situations.

The Upper Squamish Valley Fire (or Magee Road Fire) was the first emergency of 2020 requiring evacuations to hit the province of British Columbia. Read how the Red Cross responded, when rules around COVID-19 drastically altered how we work. 

When the muddy water from nearby rivers spilled into Fort McMurray in late April, some made its way into the Red Cross Health Equipment Loan Program (HELP) depot there. At its height, the freezing floodwater stood more than a metre deep in the building.

During a typical disaster, Red Cross volunteers would check on how someone is coping through a face-to-face visit, however, in keeping with COVID-19 physical distancing requirements, teams are currently doing daily check-ins by phone. In Saskatchewan, volunteers have already made more than 200 wellness check phone calls to people with vulnerabilities being supported in self-isolation.

For many Canadians in need, COVID-19 brings a whole new set of challenges in terms of food, lodging, hygiene, access to health care, and social interactions. Fewer pedestrians and reduced vehicle traffic mean less charitable giving in public spaces.