Weather warning in effect for Waterloo
Environment Canada has issued a weather alert for Waterloo region. Waterloo Fire Rescue, city public works crews and the City of Waterloo’s emergency management team will continue to monitor the weather situation to ensure the safety of the community.
Waterloo Fire Rescue offers the following home safety tips in the event of flooding or a power outage:
• Portable generators are designed to be used as a back-up power source only when the main power is interrupted. Use generators outdoors and ensure that the exhaust fumes do not enter the home. Always store fuel in safety-approved containers.
• Barbeques are not designed to provide backup heat for a home. Do not use inside a house nor in the garage and do not use or store propane tanks indoors.
• If the main power is interrupted, use flashlights or battery-operated lanterns as temporary lighting. In order to avoid fires, do not use candles.
• If you come across a downed power line, call 911 for assistance. If you are in a car, do not exit your vehicle. Call 911 and wait for help. Keep away from any tree branches that have damaged hydro lines and contact Waterloo North Hydro at 519-886-5090.
• In the event of a power outage, ensure smoke and carbon monoxide alarms have battery-backup as they will not work if they are operated via an electrical supply from your home.
• Every family and household should have an emergency kit with sufficient supplies for at least 72 hours. For information on emergency preparedness, visit the Government of Canada’s website, www.getprepared.ca.
• Avoid flooding in your home by making sure your eavestroughs, as well as the nearest storm water catch basins, are not obstructed with leaves and debris.
• Do not enter a flooded basement unless you are sure that the power is disconnected and, if an electrical panel appears to be damaged, contact a qualified electrical contractor.
• Fallen trees and ice-covered branches can pose considerable risk. Please approach with caution or contact professional tree services from certified arborists should you notice damage to privately-owned trees. For damage to city-owned trees, such as those on boulevards or in parks, please call 519-886-2310.
In addition, the public is reminded to exercise extreme caution around all bodies of water. Banks adjacent to rivers and creeks are slippery at this time of year and when combined with current weather conditions, pose a serious hazard. Parents are encouraged to keep their children and pets away from all watercourses. More information, including flood status reports for the area, can be found at www.grandriver.ca.
For more information on fire and safety, please visit the Waterloo Fire Rescue website at www.waterloo.ca/fire. Residents are also encouraged to visit the Alert Waterloo Region website, www.AlertWR.ca where there is useful emergency preparedness information for floods and severe weather.
Alert Waterloo Region is a service that provides residents with important public safety messages in the event of a large scale emergency such as a flood, severe weather, or other emergency situations. The service can deliver notifications to residents’ preferred devices via telephone, cell phone, text message (standard text message rates may apply from a wireless provider) and e-mail. When a notification is issued a resident will receive a message via voice, text or e-mail depending on how the resident chose to receive notifications. Visit www.AlertWR.ca to register for this service.
As a reminder to all residents, only call 911 when you require immediate police, fire or ambulance response, to report a fire or other dangerous situation, to save a life or to stop a crime in progress.
For updated weather-related summaries, please visit the Environment Canada website, www.weatheroffice.gc.ca.
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Media contact:
Tony Iavarone
Director, Communications
519-747-8513
TTY: 1-866-786-3941
tony.iavarone@waterloo.ca