Fact sheet
Community of Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario

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In 2014, information on the emergency preparedness of people living in the Census Agglomeration^{Note 1} of Kawartha Lakes 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 Kawartha Lakes, 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

Residents of Kawartha Lakes anticipated winter storms (including blizzards, ice storms and extreme cold) (96%), extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer (83%), heat waves (52%) and tornadoes (50%) to be the most likely emergency-type events to occur within their community.
Residents of Kawartha Lakes most commonly anticipated turning to news on the radio as an initial source of help and information in the event of a weather-related emergency or natural disaster (33%) or an industrial or transportation accident (30%^{Note E: Use with caution}) (Table 1.1). Residents most commonly anticipated turning to police or law enforcement if they were faced with rioting or civil unrest (66%^{Note E: Use with caution}) or an act of terrorism or terrorist threat (58%). In the event of an extended power outage, utility companies (55%) were most commonly anticipated to be the first source of help and information, and hospitals, clinics, doctors or other medical professionals (58%) were the most commonly anticipated sources of initial help and information in the event of an outbreak of a serious or life-threatening disease. Residents of Kawartha Lakes anticipated turning to their local government (29%^{Note E: Use with caution}) as an initial source of help and information in the event of a contamination or shortage of water or food.

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

Approximately four out of ten (43%) residents of Kawartha Lakes had personally experienced a major emergency or disaster in Canada within a community where they were living at the time. Three-quarters (74%) of these people had experienced emergencies that were severe enough to disrupt their regular daily activities.
Extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer were named by residents as the most common type of major emergency or disaster they had experienced (74%), followed by winter storms (including blizzards and ice storms) (15%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
As a result of experiencing the emergencies and disasters, residents most often needed to boil drinking water or had to drink bottled water (80%), were unable to use electrical appliances (75%), were unable to use water at home for routine tasks (61%), or were unable to heat or cool their home (57%). More serious disruptions such as home evacuations or the inability to use roads or transportation within the community were not as common, each experienced by one in six residents (17%^{Note E: Use with caution} each).
Most (90%) emergency or disaster victims were able to resume their daily activities within one week of the event; three in five (60%) were able to resume daily activities in two days or less.
About two in five (43%) residents who were affected by major emergencies or disasters received help either during or immediately following the event, most commonly from neighbours (38%^{Note E: Use with caution}), family members (36%^{Note E: Use with caution}) and friends (27%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
Approximately one-third (35%) of the residents of Kawartha Lakes who had experienced major emergencies or disasters endured a loss of property or another financial impact as a result.

Emergency planning, precautionary and fire safety behaviours

About three-quarters (77%) of people in Kawartha Lakes lived in households that were engaged in at least two emergency planning activities^{Note 6} (Table 1.2). Half (51%) lived in a household with three or four such activities. About one in ten (9%^{Note E: Use with caution}) people lived in a household that had not participated in any emergency planning activities.
Similarly, most (78%) residents lived in a household with at least two precautionary measures^{Note 7} taken in case of an emergency. Half (51%) lived in a household with three or four such measures. A small proportion (6%^{Note E: Use with caution}) of residents lived in a household with no precautionary measures in place.
Nearly all (99.7%) residents of Kawartha Lakes reported living in a household with a working smoke detector (Table 1.3). The majority (82%) stated that they had a working carbon monoxide detector in their home and approximately three-quarters (77%) reported living in a household with a working fire extinguisher. Two out of three (65%) people stated that they had all three fire safety measures within their households.
Residents of Kawartha Lakes differed significantly from the behaviours of residents of Ontario and Canadians residing in the 10 provinces in general, in terms of both the number of fire safety and precautionary measures taken and the types of activities that residents were involved in. For example, residents of Kawartha Lakes were significantly more likely to have all four precautionary measures (25%) and all three fire safety measures (65%) within their homes compared to both Ontario residents (6% and 53%, respectively) and Canadians overall (7% and 42%, respectively).^{Note 8}
In terms of the types of activities and measures that residents were involved in, people in Kawartha Lakes were significantly more likely to have an emergency exit plan (71%), a vehicle emergency supply kit (71%), a back-up generator (47%) and a working fire extinguisher within their home (77%) than both residents of Ontario (63%, 62%, 20% and 64%, respectively) and Canada overall (60%, 59%, 23% and 66%, respectively). In terms of other types of activities and measures, where there were significant differences between residents of Kawartha Lakes and Ontario residents or Canadians in general, rates of participation in these activities were generally higher among the residents of Kawartha Lakes.

Social networks and sense of belonging

Half (50%) of residents of Kawartha Lakes had a strong sense of belonging^{Note 9} to their community.
Most (94%) residents described the neighbourhood they lived in as a place where neighbours generally help each other.^{Note 10} Of those who did not describe their neighbourhood this way, the majority (82%) still described it as a place where neighbours would help each other in an emergency.^{Note 11}
Many residents had a large network of support in the event of an emergency or disaster, with more than five people to turn to if physically injured (68%), for emotional support (66%) or in case of a home evacuation (59%). However, about one in four people had a large network of support if financial help was needed (27%), and about one in ten (12%^{Note E: Use with caution}) reported that they had no one to turn to for financial help.^{Note 12}
High levels of sense of belonging, self-efficacy and neighbourhood trust, as well as civic engagement, were sometimes associated with a higher level of emergency preparedness (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 Kawartha Lakes, 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
News- Radio	33
News- Television	24
News- Internet	19
Extended power outages
Utility company	55
News- Radio	16^{Note E: Use with caution}
Family	14^{Note E: Use with caution}
Outbreak of serious or life-threatening disease
Hospital, clinic, doctor or other medical professional	58
News- Television	18^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Radio	17^{Note E: Use with caution}
Industrial or transportation accident
News- Radio	30^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Internet	22^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Television	18^{Note E: Use with caution}
Contamination or shortage of water or food^{Table 1.1, Note 1}
Local government	29^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Internet	17^{Note E: Use with caution}
Hospital, clinic, doctor or other medical professional	12^{Note E: Use with caution}
Act of terrorism or terrorist threat
Police/law enforcement	58
Rioting or civil unrest^{Table 1.1, Note 1}
Police/law enforcement	66^{Note E: Use with caution}
^E use with caution Table 1.1, 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 Kawartha Lakes, 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), Kawartha Lakes, 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	Kawartha Lakes	Ontario	Canada
	percent
Number of emergency planning activities
None	9^{Note E: Use with caution}	8	8
1 activity	13^{Note E: Use with caution}	16	17
2 activities	26	25	25
3 activities	27	28	27
4 activities	24	21	19
Number of precautionary measures
None	6^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	15	16
1 measure	15^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	28	27
2 measures	27	29	28
3 measures	26^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	20	20
4 measures	25^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	6	7
Number of fire safety measures^Note 1
None	Note F: too unreliable to be published	Note F: too unreliable to be published	1
1 measure	6^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note **}	7	14
2 measures	28^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	35	38
3 measures	65^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	53	42
^E use with caution F too unreliable to be published Table 1.2, Note significantly different from Canada level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.2, note referrer Table 1.2, Note * significantly different from both provincial and Canada level estimates (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.2, note * referrer Table 1.2, Note 1. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Canada'. Return to Table 1.2, note 1 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 Kawartha Lakes, 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), Kawartha Lakes, Ontario and Canada, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	Kawartha Lakes	Ontario	Canada
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	percent
Emergency planning activities
Emergency exit plan	71^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	63	60
Exit plan has been practised/reviewed in last 12 months^{Table 1.3, Note 1}	55^{Table 1.3, Note **}	47	46
Designated meeting place for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	33	30	33
Contact plan for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	58	57	55
Household emergency supply kit	53	47	47
Vehicle emergency supply kit^{Table 1.3, Note 3}	71^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	62	59
Extra copies of important documents	48	56	53
List of emergency contact numbers	73	71	69
Plan for meeting special health needs^{Table 1.3, Note 4}	61	61	62
Precautionary measures
Wind-up or battery-operated radio	71^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	59	58
Alternate heat source	60^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	46	48
Back-up generator	47^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	20	23
Alternate water source	71^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	44	43
Other^{Table 1.3, Note 5}	26	22	21
Fire safety measures
Working smoke detector	100^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	99	98
Working carbon monoxide detector	82^{Table 1.3, Note **}	80	60
Working fire extinguisher	77^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	64	66
Table 1.3, Note significantly different from Canada level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.3, note referrer Table 1.3, Note * significantly different from both provincial and Canada level estimates (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.3, note * referrer Table 1.3, Note 1. Percentage based only on those indicating that they have an emergency exit plan. Return to Table 1.3, note 1 referrer Table 1.3, Note 2. Excludes Canadians living in single-person households. Return to Table 1.3, note 2 referrer Table 1.3, 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 Table 1.3, 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 Table 1.3, 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: 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 Kawartha Lakes, 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 †}	51	53	65
No	46^{Note E: Use with caution}	38^{Note E: Use with caution}	62
High level of civic engagement^{Table 1.4, Note 2}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	55	56	68
No	44	41^{Table 1.4, Note *}	59
High level of social support^{Table 1.4, Note 3}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	51	59	69
No	51	48	64
Strong sense of belonging to community^{Table 1.4, Note 4}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	55	53	73
No	47	48	58^{Table 1.4, Note *}
High neighbourhood trust^{Table 1.4, Note 5}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	49	55	72
No	54	46	57^{Table 1.4, Note *}
High level of self-efficacy^{Table 1.4, Note 6}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	58	55	68
No	43^{Table 1.4, Note *}	46	63
^E use with caution Table 1.4, Note * significantly different from reference category (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.4, note * referrer Table 1.4, Note † reference category Return to Table 1.4, note † referrer Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, 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: 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 (13%) 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 equal to 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 greater than 5% but not above 10% 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 Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Kawartha Lakes (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 Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario Fact sheetCommunity of Kawartha Lakes (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 Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario Fact sheet
Community of Kawartha Lakes (CA), Ontario

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