Today, both the Halton Region and the Town of Oakville have made a declaration of emergency in response to the every increasing threat of COVID-19.
One of the biggest threats of this pandemic is that hospitals such as Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital become overwhelmed by cases, and therefore are unable to provide the excellent healthcare we are used to. Currently, there are no people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 that are being treated in any of Halton Healthcare's hospitals.
Town of Oakville Declaration of Emergency
The Town of Oakville's declaration states that “The outbreak of a communicable disease namely COVID-19 coronavirus constitutes a danger of major proportions that could result in serious harm to persons”.
By declaring a State of Emergency in Oakville, we will be able to make decisions and issue orders faster than we could if we had to ask Council to pass them."
Under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, “The Head of Council may declare an emergency exists in the municipality and may take such actions and make such orders as he or she considers necessary and are not contrary to law to implement the emergency plan of the municipality and to protect property and the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of the emergency area.”
“Council and I are committed to ensuring we provide every support necessary to our community, our staff, and our regional public health officials during this very challenging time,” said Mayor Rob Burton. “Declaring a state of emergency is meant to emphasize to our community the serious challenge we are facing, and to encourage them to stay home and stay safe. We are continuing to work closely with our regional, provincial and federal partners and are following their lead on the precautions necessary to ensure containment and the safety and support of our residents.”
Town of Oakville Emergency Plan
Halton Region Declaration of Emergency
The Halton Region declaration of emergency is part of Halton Region’s ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the community, and will ensure the Region can continue to act and respond quickly to the pandemic and any other events that arise in the weeks ahead. A copy of the declaration is included below.
“This declaration is an important message to our community: we need to take this seriously and we need to act now,” said Chair Carr. “We need to listen to the recommendations of Public Health to practice physical distancing and self-isolate when directed – to protect ourselves, the ones most vulnerable, our first responders and healthcare workers. We must all do our part to control the spread of COVID-19."
As of March 24th there are a total of 14 confirmed cases of which all but one are self-isolating. One of the 14 has died. There are 6 active cases in Oakville.
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