Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia

More information

In 2014, information on the emergency preparedness of people living in the Census Metropolitan Area^{Note 1} of Victoria 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 Victoria, 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

Earthquakes (93%), extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer (69%) and storm surges or tsunamis (67%) were named by residents of Victoria as the events most likely to occur in their community.
Residents most commonly reported that they would anticipate turning to their utility company in the event of an extended power outage (48%) and to a hospital, clinic, doctor or other medical professional in the event of an outbreak of a serious or life-threatening disease (47%). If faced with rioting or civil unrest, residents most commonly anticipated turning to police or law enforcement (41%) (Table 1.1).
Residents most frequently anticipated turning to news on the radio in the event of a weather-related emergency or natural disaster (41%), an act of terrorism or terrorist threat (32%) or an industrial or transportation accident (31%). If they faced a contamination or shortage of water or food, residents anticipated turning to local government first (27%).

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

Approximately one-quarter (27%) of Victoria residents have faced a major emergency or disaster in Canada in a community they were living in at the time of the event, three-quarters (74%) of whom reported experiencing severe disruptions to their daily activities as a result of the event.
Winter storms (including blizzards and ice storms) (71%) were the most commonly experienced emergency or disaster by residents of Victoria, followed by extended power outages lasting 24 hours or longer (19%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
The most common types of disruption to daily activities endured by residents who had experienced major emergencies or disasters included missing school or work (78%) and missing an appointment or planned activity (69%). More severe disruptions experienced were an inability to use roads or transportation in the community (66%), home evacuation (22%^{Note E: Use with caution}) and an inability to communicate outside the home (14%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
Three-quarters (76%) of residents who experienced an emergency or disaster were able to resume their daily activities within one week of the event: 15%^{Note E: Use with caution} within 24 hours, 19%^{Note E: Use with caution} within one to two days, 28%^{Note E: Use with caution} within three to five days and 14%^{Note E: Use with caution} within six to seven days.
Nearly one-half (47%) of residents who had experienced an emergency or disaster received help or information during or immediately following the event, most commonly from a neighbour (42%^{Note E: Use with caution}) or news media (19%^{Note E: Use with caution}).
One-quarter (24%^{Note E: Use with caution}) of residents of Victoria who experienced a major emergency or disaster in Canada in a community where they were living at the time of the event and which was significant enough to disrupt their regular daily routine also endured a loss of property or financial impact.

Emergency planning, precautionary and fire safety behaviours

Three-quarters (77%) of people residing in Victoria lived in households that were engaged in at least two emergency planning activities,^{Note 6} and over half (54%) lived in households with three or four such activities (Table 1.2). One in twenty (5%^{Note E: Use with caution}) people lived in a household that had not participated in any emergency planning activities.
Two-thirds (66%) lived in a household with at least two precautionary measures^{Note 7} taken in case of an emergency, and over one-third (36%) lived in a household with three or four such measures. One-tenth (9%) of people lived in a household with no precautionary measures in place.
Almost all (98%) residents reported living in a household with a working smoke detector, and three in four (74%) reported living in a household with a working fire extinguisher (Table 1.3). Nearly one-half (47%) of residents stated that they had a working carbon monoxide detector in their household. Overall, four in ten (38%) residents of Victoria stated that they had implemented all three fire safety measures in their household.
The number of emergency planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures residents of Victoria engaged in did not generally differ from residents in British Columbia; however, there were some differences when compared to residents of Canada’s 10 provinces overall. For example, Victoria residents were more likely to have participated in all four emergency planning activities (29%) and have all four precautionary measures in place (11%) compared to Canadians in general (19% and 7%, respectively).^{Note 8}
There were differences in the types of activities and measures in place by residents of Victoria when compared to British Columbia and Canada in general. Furthermore, when significant differences did exist, residents of Victoria were almost always more likely to have engaged in the activity or measure than residents of British Columbia and Canada overall. For example, Victoria residents were more likely to have a wind-up or battery-operated radio (68%), a household emergency supply kit (63%) and an alternate water source (56%) compared to those in British Columbia (59%, 55% and 48%, respectively) and Canada (58%, 47% and 43%, respectively). In addition, residents of Victoria were more likely to have an emergency exit plan (74%), a working fire extinguisher (74%) and an alternate heat source (60%) compared to Canadians in general.

Social networks and sense of belonging

More than half (54%) of Victoria’s residents had a strong sense of belonging^{Note 9} to their community.^{Note 10}
More than eight in ten (84%) residents described the neighbourhood they lived in as a place where neighbours generally help each other.^{Note 11} Of those who did not describe their neighbourhood this way, most (81%) still described it as a place where neighbours would help each other in an emergency.^{Note 12}
The majority of individuals had a large network of support in the event of an emergency or disaster, with more than five people to turn to for emotional support (66%), for help if physically injured (63%)^{Note 13} and in the event of a home evacuation (57%).^{Note 14} One-quarter (26%) of residents had a large support network if financial help was needed, and one in ten (11%) reported that they had no one to turn to for financial help.^{Note 15}
High levels of sense of belonging, social support, self-efficacy and neighbourhood trust, as well as civic and political 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 Victoria, British Columbia, 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	41
News- Internet	17
News- Television	14
Extended power outages
Utility company	48
News- Radio	27
News- Internet	7^{Note E: Use with caution}
Outbreak of serious or life-threatening disease
Hospital, clinic, doctor or other medical professional	47
News- Radio	23
News- Television	22
Industrial or transportation accident
News- Radio	31
News- Television	18
Police/law enforcement	17^{Note E: Use with caution}
Contamination or shortage of water or food^{Table 1.1, Note 1}
Local government	27
News- Radio	24
News- Television	16^{Note E: Use with caution}
Act of terrorism or terrorist threat
News- Radio	32
Police/law enforcement	29
News- Television	24
Rioting or civil unrest
Police/law enforcement	41
News- Television	29^{Note E: Use with caution}
News- Radio	28^{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 Victoria, British Columbia, 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), Victoria, British Columbia and Canada, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Number of planning activities, fire safety and precautionary measures taken by residents	Victoria	British Columbia	Canada
	percent
Number of emergency planning activities
None	5^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.2, Note **}	6	8
1 activity	16	15	17
2 activities	23	22	25
3 activities	25	29	27
4 activities	29^{Table 1.2, Note **}	25	19
Number of precautionary measures
None	9^{Table 1.2, Note ***}	13	16
1 measure	22^{Table 1.2, Note **}	24	27
2 measures	30	27	28
3 measures	25^{Table 1.2, Note **}	23	20
4 measures	11^{Table 1.2, Note **}	8	7
Number of fire safety measures^{Table 1.2, Note 1}^{Table 1.2, Note 2}^{Table 1.2, Note 3}
None	Note F: too unreliable to be published	1^{Note E: Use with caution}	1
1 measure	12	14	14
2 measures	39	40	38
3 measures	38	38	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 Table 1.2, Note 2. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'British Columbia'. Return to Table 1.2, note 2 referrer Table 1.2, Note 3. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Victoria'. Return to Table 1.2, note 3 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 Victoria, British Columbia, 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), Victoria, British Columbia and Canada, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	Victoria	British Columbia	Canada
Residents whose households were involved in the following:	percent
Emergency planning activities
Emergency exit plan	74^{Table 1.3, Note **}	71	60
Exit plan has been practised/reviewed in last 12 months^{Table 1.3, Note 1}	49	49	46
Designated meeting place for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	38	38	33
Contact plan for household members^{Table 1.3, Note 2}	60^{Table 1.3, Note *}	54	55
Household emergency supply kit	63^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	55	47
Vehicle emergency supply kit^{Table 1.3, Note 3}	58	58	59
Extra copies of important documents	55	55	53
List of emergency contact numbers	65	68	69
Plan for meeting special health needs^{Table 1.3, Note 4}	67	61	62
Precautionary measures
Wind-up or battery-operated radio	68^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	59	58
Alternate heat source	60^{Table 1.3, Note **}	55	48
Back-up generator	19	22	23
Alternate water source	56^{Table 1.3, Note ***}	48	43
Other^{Table 1.3, Note 5}	25	21	21
Fire safety measures
Working smoke detector	98^{Table 1.3, Note *}	95	98
Working carbon monoxide detector^{Table 1.3, Note 6}^{Table 1.3, Note 7}	47^{Table 1.3, Note **}	52	60
Working fire extinguisher	74^{Table 1.3, Note **}	69	66
Table 1.3, Note * significantly different from provincial level estimate (p < 0.05) Return to Table 1.3, note * referrer 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 Table 1.3, Note 6. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'British Columbia'. Return to Table 1.3, note 6 referrer Table 1.3, Note 7. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Victoria'. Return to Table 1.3, note 7 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 Victoria, British Columbia, 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 7}^{Table 1.4, Note †}	54	41	38
No^{Table 1.4, Note 8}^{Table 1.4, Note 9}	46	16^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.4, Note *}	37^{Note E: Use with caution}
High level of civic engagement^{Table 1.4, Note 2}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note †}	59	46	42
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	41^{Table 1.4, Note *}	19^{Note E: Use with caution}^{Table 1.4, Note *}	31^{Table 1.4, Note *}
High level of social support^{Table 1.4, Note 3}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note 7}^{Table 1.4, Note †}	59	41	48
No^{Table 1.4, Note 10}	53	36	36^{Table 1.4, Note *}
Strong sense of belonging to community^{Table 1.4, Note 4}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note 7}^{Table 1.4, Note †}	63	41	40
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	42^{Table 1.4, Note *}	32	37
High neighbourhood trust^{Table 1.4, Note 5}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note 10}^{Table 1.4, Note †}	58	44	41
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	51	32^{Table 1.4, Note *}	38
High level of self-efficacy^{Table 1.4, Note 6}
Yes^{Table 1.4, Note 10}^{Table 1.4, Note †}	57	43	39
No^{Table 1.4, Note 7}	50	30^{Table 1.4, Note *}	39
^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 Table 1.4, 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 Table 1.4, Note 8. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were greater than 5% but not above 10% for 'Precautionary measures'. Return to Table 1.4, note 8 referrer Table 1.4, Note 9. Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were equal to 12% for 'Fire safety measures'. Return to Table 1.4, note 9 referrer Table 1.4, Note 10 Responses of 'don't know/not stated' were equal to 11% for 'Fire safety measures'. Return to Table 1.4, note 10 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.

Responses of ‘don't know/not stated’ were greater than 5% but not above 10% when respondents were asked about their sense of belonging to their community.

Return to note 10 referrer

Footnote 11.

A proportion (24%) 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 11 referrer

Footnote 12.

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 12 referrer

Footnote 13.

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 they were physically injured.

Return to note 13 referrer

Footnote 14.

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 in case of home evacuation.

Return to note 14 referrer

Footnote 15.

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 15 referrer

Date modified:: 2016-10-13

Language selection

Search and menus

Search

Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia

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 Victoria (CMA), British Columbia Fact sheetCommunity of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia

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

Copyright

Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia Fact sheet
Community of Victoria (CMA), British Columbia

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