At yesterday evening's digitally hosted meeting of City Council, the governing body voted to enact a week enforcing their efforts to keep all City residents safe.

NAOSH/Emergency Preparedness Week was declared to occur this year from May 3 to 9 to help residents of the City of Swift Current know the importance of planning for disasters, as well as observing general safety practices in the workplace.

NAOSH stands for North American Occupational Safety and Health.

City of Swift Current OHS/EMO Coordinator Ed Fonger explained that safety starts with everyone.

“The goal during North American Occupational Health and Safety Week is to focus the attention of employers, employees, and partners, and the public of the importance of preventing injury and illness in the workplace.”

He added the City of Swift Current looks to uphold employee health and safety.

“Over the past six years, we have strived to eliminate the hazards before starting any job or task. We have invested time and resources into our employees so they are properly trained before they do any kind of task.”

The week promotes education into steps that can help anyone better understand and prepare for the risks they face.

Knowing the risks, making a plan in the event of an emergency, and having an emergency kit are all ways to be better prepared.

Fonger also advocated for the use of the City’s emergency alert system, as well as the SaskAlert app to be made aware of emergency or urgent situations.

You can be added to the City of Swift Current’s alert system on their website. The system can issue alerts for situations such as a boil water advisory in your area or other messages relating to possible emergencies.

City of Swift Current General Manager of Infrastructure and Operations, Mitch Minken, said that they hope to see many more residents subscribe to the system.

“In the past, we’ve had all of the Highland subdivision be put on a public drinking water advisory because of a low-pressure situation, and it’s very difficult for us to get that information out… that tool was really brought on board to help us with that [type of situation.]”

The system sends out alerts to only those in areas affected by drinking water advisories, power outages, or other emergency situations.

This year’s week, in the face of COVID-19, may be easier to connect to everyday life than before.

City of Swift Current Chief Administrative Officer, Tim Marcus, said being prepared for an emergency might have benefited some residents prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.

“I’m sure that there were lots of people that went into this last two months not as well prepared as they could be if they followed some of the guidelines and directions in the program. You wouldn’t have seen so much panic buying of certain items and stockpiling stuff unneeded.”