Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario

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In 2014, information on the emergency preparedness of people living in the Census Agglomeration^{Note 1} of Cornwall was collected through the Survey of Emergency Preparedness and Resilience in Canada (SEPR).^{Note 2} This fact sheet presents information on the risk awareness and level of emergency preparedness of the residents of Cornwall, which could help improve the understanding of community resilience in the event of an emergency.^{Note 3}^{Note 4}

Risk awareness and anticipated sources of help in an emergency or disaster

Winter storms (including blizzards, ice storms and extreme cold) (90%), extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer (80%) and heat waves (58%) were named by residents of Cornwall as the emergencies or disasters most likely to occur within their community.
Residents named news on the radio as the source of information they would turn to first in the event of a weather-related emergency or natural disaster (31%) or an industrial or transportation accident (32%) (Table 1.1). In the event of rioting or civil unrest (45%) or an act of terrorism or terrorist threat (40%), residents anticipated seeking help and information from law enforcement first. Utility companies were named as the most common source of initial help and information in the event of an extended power outage (34%). In the event of a contamination or shortage of water or food, residents anticipated first turning to their local government (22%^{Note E: Use with caution}), while hospitals, clinics, doctors or other medical professionals were the most commonly anticipated sources of help and information if residents of Cornwall were faced with an outbreak of a serious or life-threatening disease (61%).

Prior lifetime experience with a major emergency or disaster^{Note 5}

Two-thirds (67%) of people living in Cornwall have personally experienced a major emergency or disaster in Canada in a community where they were living at the time. For most (85%), this emergency or disaster was significant enough to have resulted in severe disruptions to their daily activities.
Winter storms (including blizzards and ice storms) were the most commonly experienced emergencies or disasters by residents (89%). Extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer followed as the second most commonly experienced emergency (25%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
Most (83%) people in Cornwall who have endured a major emergency or disaster were unable to use electrical appliances as a result, making it the most common type of disruption to daily activities. Other common disruptions experienced by residents included a need to miss work or school (69%) or an appointment or a planned activity (64%), as well as a need to boil drinking water or drink bottled water (50%). Severe disruptions to daily lives included home evacuation (30%^{Note E: Use with caution}) and an inability to use roads or transportation within the community (34%), both experienced by about one in three victims of emergencies in Cornwall.
Most residents were able to resume their daily activities within one month of the event. More specifically, 61% of emergency or disaster victims recovered within one week of the event, and for 35%^{Note E: Use with caution}, recovery took between one and four weeks.
More than half (56%) of people received help either during or immediately following the emergency or disaster. Family members (44%) and neighbours (30%^{Note E: Use with caution}) were the most common sources of help.
More than one-third (36%) of people in Cornwall who experienced major emergencies or disasters endured a loss of property or some kind of a financial impact. Experiencing other types of serious or long-term implications was rare.

Emergency planning, precautionary and fire safety behaviours

Seven in ten (70%) people in Cornwall lived in households that were engaged in at least two emergency planning activities,^{Note 6} with half (49%) living in households with three or four such activities (Table 1.2). A small proportion (4%^{Note E: Use with caution}) of residents lived in a household that had not participated in any emergency planning activities.
Three out of five (59%) residents lived in a household with at least two precautionary measures^{Note 7} taken in case of an emergency, with close to one-third (31%) living in a household with three or four such measures. Less than one in ten (8%^{Note E: Use with caution}) people lived in a household with no precautionary measures in place.
Most (99%) residents reported living in a household with a working smoke detector (Table 1.3). Two-thirds reported living in a household with a working fire extinguisher or a working carbon monoxide detector (65% each). Close to half (46%) of residents stated that they had implemented all three fire safety measures within their households.
With a few exceptions, the number of emergency planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents of Cornwall did not significantly differ from all Ontario residents or Canadians residing in the 10 provinces in general. Some of the exceptions include: the proportion of Cornwall residents who did not engage in any emergency planning activities (4%^{Note E: Use with caution}) was half the size of the provincial and national proportions (8% each); the proportion of residents who had no precautionary measures set in place (8%^{Note E: Use with caution}) was half the size of the provincial (15%) and national (16%) proportions.^{Note 8}
Residents of Cornwall typically did not significantly differ from Ontario residents or Canadians overall in terms of the types of activities and measures they were involved in. Of the few differences observed, the proportion of residents of Cornwall who had a working carbon monoxide detector within their homes (65%) was significantly lower than Ontario residents overall (80%).

Social networks and sense of belonging

Close to half (48%) of Cornwall’s residents had a strong sense of belonging^{Note 9} to their community.
Most (92%) residents described their neighbourhood as a place where neighbours generally help each other.^{Note 10} Of those who did not describe their neighbourhood this way, the majority (83%) still described it as a place where neighbours would help each other in an emergency.^{Note 11}
About two-thirds of residents had a large network of support in the event of an emergency or disaster, with more than five people to turn to for help for emotional support (65%) or if physically injured (64%). In the event of a home evacuation, more than half of residents had a large network of support (56%). However, one-quarter of residents had such a network of people to turn to for financial help (26%), and 7%^{Note E: Use with caution} reported that they had no one to turn to for financial help.^{Note 12}
Generally, the level of emergency preparedness of residents of Cornwall was not impacted by their social networks, sense of belonging or social and political involvement (Table 1.4).

Data tables

Table 1.1
Most commonly anticipated sources of initial help and information, by type of emergency or disaster, residents of Cornwall, Ontario, 2014
Table summary
This table displays the results of Most commonly anticipated sources of initial help and information. The information is grouped by Most common sources of initial help and information by type of emergency or disaster (appearing as row headers), percent (appearing as column headers).
Most common sources of initial help and information by type of emergency or disaster	percent
Weather-related emergency or natural disaster^{Table 1.1, Note 1}
News- Radio	31
News- Television	21
Family	16^{Note E: Use with caution}
Extended power outages
Utility company	34
News- Radio	22
Family	16^{Note E: Use with caution}
Outbreak of serious or life-threatening disease
Hospital, clinic, doctor or other medical professional	61
News- Radio	15^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Television	13^{Note E: Use with caution}
Industrial or transportation accident
News- Radio	32
Police/law enforcement	21^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Television	16^{Note E: Use with caution}
Contamination or shortage of water or food
Local government	22^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Radio	18^{Note E: Use with caution}
Act of terrorism or terrorist threat^{Table 1.1, Note 1}
Police/law enforcement	40
News- Radio	36
News- Television	31^{Note E: Use with caution}
Rioting or civil unrest
Police/law enforcement	45
News- Radio	21^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Television	20^{Note E: Use with caution}
^{Note E: Use with caution} use with caution Note 1. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% when respondents were asked about their likely sources of initial help and information. Return to table 1.1, note 1 referrer Note: Respondents who perceived their community was at risk for any form of emergency or disaster were then asked where they would turn to first for information or assistance in the event of the perceived emergency or disaster. Respondents could provide more than one response. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' are included in the total for the percentage calculation but are not footnoted when representing 5% or less of respondents. Source: Statistics Canada, Survey of Emergency Preparedness and Resilience in Canada, 2014.

Table 1.2
Number of emergency planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents, community of Cornwall, Ontario, 2014
Table summary
This table displays the results of Number of emergency planning activities. The information is grouped by Number of planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents (appearing as row headers), Cornwall, Ontario and Canada, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Number of planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents	Cornwall	Ontario	Canada
	percent
Number of emergency planning activities^{Table 1.2, Note 1}
None	4^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	8	8
1 activity	19^{Note E: Use with caution}	16	17
2 activities	21	25	25
3 activities	26	28	27
4 activities	23	21	19
Number of precautionary measures
None	8^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	15	16
1 measure	30	28	27
2 measures	28	29	28
3 measures	26	20	20
4 measures	5^{Note E: Use with caution}	6	7
Number of fire safety measures^{Table 1.2, Note 1}^{Table 1.2, Note 2}
None	Note F: too unreliable to be published	Note F: too unreliable to be published	1
1 measure	11^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note *}	7	14
2 measures	36	35	38
3 measures	46	53	42
^{Note E: Use with caution} use with caution F too unreliable to be published Note * significantly different from provincial level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to table 1.2, note * referrer Note * significantly different from both provincial and Canada level estimates (p < 0.05) Return to table 1.2, note * referrer Note 1. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Cornwall'. Return to table 1.2, note 1 referrer Note 2. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Canada'. Return to table 1.2, note 2 referrer Note: Responses of 'don't know/not stated' are included in the total for the percentage calculation but are not footnoted when representing 5% or less of respondents. Emergency planning activities include: an emergency exit plan, an emergency supply kit, photocopies/electronic copies of important documents and a list of emergency contact numbers. Precautionary measures include: a battery-operated or wind-up radio, an alternative heat source, a back-up generator and an alternative water source. Fire safety measures include a working smoke detector, a working carbon monoxide detector and a working fire extinguisher. Source: Statistics Canada, Survey of Emergency Preparedness and Resilience in Canada, 2014.

Table 1.3
Planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures residents engaged in, community of Cornwall, Ontario, 2014
Table summary
This table displays the results of Planning activities. The information is grouped by Residents whose households were involved in the following: (appearing as row headers), Cornwall, Ontario and Canada, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	Cornwall	Ontario	Canada
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	percent
Emergency planning activities
Emergency exit plan	67	63	60
Exit plan has been practised/reviewed in last 12 months^{Table 1.3, Note 1}	48	47	46
Designated meeting place for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	40^{Table 1.3, Note *}	30	33
Contact plan for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	61	57	55
Household emergency supply kit	48	47	47
Vehicle emergency supply kit^{Table 1.3, Note 3}	68^{Table 1.3, Note **}	62	59
Extra copies of important documents^{Table 1.3, Note 6}	52	56	53
List of emergency contact numbers	69	71	69
Plan for meeting special health needs^{Table 1.3, Note 4}	55	61	62
Precautionary measures
Wind-up or battery-operated radio	63	59	58
Alternate heat source	49	46	48
Back-up generator	23	20	23
Alternate water source	51	44	43
Other^{Table 1.3, Note 5}	28	22	21
Fire safety measures
Working smoke detector	99	99	98
Working carbon monoxide detector	65^{Table 1.3, Note *}	80	60
Working fire extinguisher	65	64	66
Note * significantly different from provincial level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to table 1.3, note * referrer Note significantly different from Canada level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to table 1.3, note referrer Note 1. Percentage based only on those indicating that they have an emergency exit plan. Return to table 1.3, note 1 referrer Note 2. Excludes Canadians living in single-person households. Return to table 1.3, note 2 referrer Note 3. Excludes those who reported that they lived in a household that did not have a vehicle. Return to table 1.3, note 3 referrer Note 4. Percentage based only on those indicating that they or someone in their household has special medical needs. Return to table 1.3, note 4 referrer Note 5. 'Other precautionary measures' include having an escape/rescue plan for pets, extra supply of fuel, checking and replenishing emergency supplies, and keeping exits clear. Return to table 1.3, note 5 referrer Note 6. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Cornwall'. Return to table 1.3, note 6 referrer Note: Responses of 'don't know/not stated' are included in the total for the percentage calculation but are not footnoted when representing 5% or less of respondents. Source: Statistics Canada, Survey of Emergency Preparedness and Resilience in Canada, 2014.

Table 1.4
High or moderately high levels of emergency planning, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents, by social and political involvement, community of Cornwall, Ontario, 2014
Table summary
This table displays the results of High or moderately high levels of emergency planning. The information is grouped by Social and political involvement (appearing as row headers), Percentage of residents who had high or moderately high levels of..., Planning activities, Precautionary measures and Fire safety measures, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Social and political involvement	Percentage of residents who had high or moderately high levels of...
	Planning activities	Precautionary measures	Fire safety measures
	percent
Engagement in political activities^{Table 1.4, Note 1}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	50	30	46
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	48^{Note E: Use with caution}	26^{Note E: Use with caution}	54^{Note E: Use with caution}
High level of civic engagement^{Table 1.4, Note 2}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	50	31	49
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	47	27^{Note E: Use with caution}	48
High level of social support^{Table 1.4, Note 3}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	55^{Note E: Use with caution}	36^{Note E: Use with caution}	59^{Note E: Use with caution}
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	50	30	42
Strong sense of belonging to community^{Table 1.4, Note 4}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	53	35	41
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}^{Table 1.4, Note 8}	47	26^{Note E: Use with caution}	53
High neighbourhood trust^{Table 1.4, Note 5}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	62	37^{Note E: Use with caution}	53
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}^{Table 1.4, Note 8}	41^{Table 1.4, Note *}	25	42
High level of self-efficacy^{Table 1.4, Note 6}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	55	37	52
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}^{Table 1.4, Note 8}	43	26^{Note E: Use with caution}	43
^{Note E: Use with caution} use with caution Note * significantly different from reference category (p < 0.05) Return to table 1.4, note * referrer Note † reference category Return to table 1.4, note † referrer Note 1. Includes individuals over the age of 17 years who are eligible to vote, and who have participated in or volunteered for political parties or events in the past 12 months, including municipal, provincial, or federal elections, or expressed views on political or social issues through signing a petition, contacting news agencies or politicians, or attended a meeting involving social or community issues. Return to table 1.4, note 1 referrer Note 2. Civic engagement measures individuals over the age of 17 years who were involved in a recreational group or organization in the past 12 months, and includes engagement in political activities. A 'high level' is defined as having been involved in at least 4 activities in the past 12 months. Return to table 1.4, note 2 referrer Note 3. A 'high level of social support' is defined as having five or more people whom that individual could turn to for help in an emergency if they are physically injured, require emotional support, shelter, and/or financial assistance. Return to table 1.4, note 3 referrer Note 4. A 'strong sense of belonging to community' is rating one's own sense of belonging to their community as a 4 or a 5 on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents "very weak" and 5 "very strong". Return to table 1.4, note 4 referrer Note 5. 'High neighbourhood trust' is rating one's own trust in the people in one's neighbourhood as 4 or 5 on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents "cannot be trusted at all" and 5 represents "can be trusted a lot", as well as having a response of "very likely" when asked about the likelihood of someone in their neighbourhood returning a lost wallet or purse containing two hundred dollars with the money still inside. Return to table 1.4, note 5 referrer Note 6. A 'high level of self-efficacy' is derived from having a high self-rating on a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) for the following three categories: an ability to think clearly and solve day-to-day problems, to handle unexpected and difficult problems, and to figure out what to do if faced with an emergency situation. Return to table 1.4, note 6 referrer Note 7. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Fire safety measures'. Return to table 1.4, note 7 referrer Note 8. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Planning activities'. Return to table 1.4, note 8 referrer Note: Responses of 'don't know/not stated' are included in the total for the percentage calculation but are not footnoted when representing 5% or less of respondents. Households with ‘moderately high’ or ‘high’ levels of emergency planning engaged in 3 or 4 of the following: having an exit plan, an emergency supply kit, extra copies of important documents and an emergency contact list. 'Moderately high' or 'high' levels of precautionary measures include having 3 or 4 of the following: a wind-up or battery operated radio, a back-up generator, an alternate source of heat and additional water. 'Moderately high' or 'high' levels of fire safety measure include having all 3 of the following: a working smoke detector, a working fire extinguisher, and a working carbon monoxide detector. Source: Statistics Canada, Survey of Emergency Preparedness and Resilience in Canada, 2014.

Notes

^E use with caution

Footnote 1.

A Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) or a Census Agglomeration (CA) is formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centred on a population centre (known as the core). A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more must live in the core. A CA must have a core population of at least 10,000. To be included in the CMA or CA, other adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the core as measured by commuting flows derived from census data.

Return to note 1 referrer

Footnote 2.

The target population for the SEPR included all persons 15 years of age or older, residing in households in Canada’s 10 provinces, excluding full-time residents of institutions (e.g. nursing homes, group homes, hospitals).

Return to note 2 referrer

Footnote 3.

The SEPR covers three types of communities: Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs), Census Agglomerations (CAs) with population greater than 50,000, and ‘smaller communities’ which include CAs with population 50,000 or less and those areas that fall outside of CMAs and CAs. All CMAs and CAs (with population greater than 50,000) were included in the SEPR. A sample of households were selected from smaller communities within each province to represent all households within the province in similar communities. Additional information on the SEPR and its sampling methodology can be found in the ‘Survey description’ section.

Return to note 3 referrer

Footnote 4.

Throughout this fact sheet, responses of 'don't know/not stated' are included in the total for the percentage calculation but are not footnoted when representing 5% or less of respondents.

Return to note 4 referrer

Footnote 5.

This section focuses on personal experiences with emergencies or disasters that happened in Canada, in a community where the person was living at the time, and was significant enough to severely interrupt the individual’s regular daily activities.

Return to note 5 referrer

Footnote 6.

Emergency planning activities include: having an emergency exit plan, a household emergency supply kit, extra copies of important documents and an emergency contact list.

Return to note 6 referrer

Footnote 7.

Precautionary measures include: having a wind-up or battery-operated radio, an alternate heat source such as a non-electric stove or heater or a wood-burning fireplace, a back-up generator and an alternative water source such as a well, tank or litres of stored water.

Return to note 7 referrer

Footnote 8.

Unless otherwise specified, differences are statistically significant (p < 0.05).

Return to note 8 referrer

Footnote 9.

A 'strong sense of belonging to community' is rating one's own sense of belonging to their community as a 4 or a 5 on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 represents "very weak" and 5 "very strong".

Return to note 9 referrer

Footnote 10.

A proportion (30%) of respondents were not asked questions regarding neighbourhood helpfulness in the event of an emergency and as such these cases are not included in the analysis on neighbourhood helpfulness in general or in the event of an emergency.

Return to note 10 referrer

Footnote 11.

Responses of ‘don't know/not stated’ were greater than 5% but not above 10% when respondents were asked about whether their neighbourhood is a place where neighbours would help each other if there is an emergency.

Return to note 11 referrer

Footnote 12.

Responses of ‘don't know/not stated’ were equal to 11% when respondents were asked about the number of people they could turn to for help if financial support is needed.

Return to note 12 referrer

Date modified:: 2016-10-13

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Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario

Risk awareness and anticipated sources of help in an emergency or disaster

Prior lifetime experience with a major emergency or disaster^{Note 5}

Emergency planning, precautionary and fire safety behaviours

Social networks and sense of belonging

Data tables

Notes

Fact sheetCommunity of Cornwall (CA), Ontario Fact sheetCommunity of Cornwall (CA), Ontario

Risk awareness and anticipated sources of help in an emergency or disaster

Prior lifetime experience with a major emergency or disasterNote 5

Emergency planning, precautionary and fire safety behaviours

Social networks and sense of belonging

Data tables

Notes

Note of appreciation

Standards of service to the public

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Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Cornwall (CA), Ontario

Prior lifetime experience with a major emergency or disaster^{Note 5}