Whereas the Government of British Columbia enacted the Emergency Program Management Regulation under the authority of the Emergency Program Act in 1996, including amendments up to BC Reg. 20098; And whereas there is no standardized process or document provided by the Provincial Emergency Program for planning and authorizing re-entry into evacuated areas during emergencies to facilitate coordination and cooperation between local authorities, the government, government ministries, government corporations and government agencies: Therefore be it resolved that the Province be requested to develop a process and standardized document for all local authorities and response agencies to utilize for authorizing re-entry into evacuated areas; And be it further resolved that the Province be requested to incorporate the process and standardized document for authorizing re-entry into evacuated areas, into future training and education materials supported by Emergency Management BC.
Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General Local authorities are the primary authority for allowing or denying persons to remain or enter into an area under an evacuation order, including temporary re-entry. Although not mandatory or prescriptive, Emergency Management BC EMBC has developed guidelines for Managing Access to Areas under Evacuation Order that provide a standardized means for local authorities and First Nation communities to authorize the temporary re-entry into an area that is under an evacuation order. These guidelines were released in May 2019 and are available on the EMBC website. The guidelines will be referenced in future EMBC training materials and their availability will be advertised to local authorities and First Nations. However, there is no intention to implement formal training as the adoption of the procedures remains at the discretion of individual authorities. The Province is in the process of modernizing the Emergency Program Act EPA and released a discussion paper on October 28, 2019 that outlines proposed changes. The three-month consultation was open until January 31, 2020 and local governments, First Nation, interested organizations and public input was encouraged.