Bryan Hayes statement on Wawa flood crisis
Thursday, November 01, 2012 by: SooToday.com Staff
NEWS RELEASE
BRYAN HAYES, MP
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Bryan Hayes, M.P. is sympathetic to impacted flood victims in Wawa
SAULT STE. MARIE - Today, MP Bryan Hayes, on behalf of the Conservative Government and Stephen Harper, extended heartfelt sympathy to the approximately 110 individuals who have been impacted by the flooding in Wawa.
“I would like to thank the first responders in this community for the great work that they have done in assisting their fellow Canadians in this trying time,” said MP Hayes, of Sault Ste. Marie. “Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been severely affected by the extensive damage caused by flooding in Wawa.”
Emergencies are managed first at the local level: hospitals, fire departments, police and municipalities.
If they need assistance at the local level, they request it from the provinces or territories.
If the emergency escalates beyond their capabilities, the provinces or territories seek assistance from the federal government.
In order to facilitate a cross-jurisdictional response in this regard, the National Emergency Response System (NERS) was developed by the Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Response Working Group and approved by FPT Ministers in January 2011.
The coordination and provisioning of resources can move quickly from the local to the national level.
As per this protocol, the Government of Canada always stands ready to assist at the request of the province.
MP Hayes emphasised the strong ties of Northern Ontario communities and lent his support saying: “The close-knit nature of our Northern Ontario communities means that the shock waves of this emergency are felt by those of us in Sault Ste. Marie and Area. We strongly empathize with our Wawa neighbours and as a Federal representative of Northern Ontario in the House of Commons, I am confident that the Federal Government is ready to step in should the province make the request.”
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Earlier SooToday.com coverage of this story
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KiwiOnASticK 11/1/2012 3:47:47 PM ReportA little slow to react?
neskantaga 11/1/2012 3:58:10 PM ReportA little slow!!! The crisis is almost over
nut that's typical of politicians He had nothing to gain from it!
RLE 11/1/2012 4:57:09 PM ReportHayes finally came out of his haze and realized there was a problem.
KiwiOnASticK 11/1/2012 5:28:43 PM ReportIt probably took this long for Harper to review/censor this press release before sending.
Moonshiner 11/1/2012 5:56:21 PM ReportYou mean they have done nothing up to this point?We had better hope nothing like sandy ever happens to us!!
cjborg 11/1/2012 6:46:33 PM ReportLets get the facts straight... the Province must be approached first then the Fed. Government by the Province....
The main problem in the north seems to be too much NDP inept representation ... politics at its worst... where was the NDP MPP and what helpful/timely guidance has he provided to the Wawa community???
............"The province urgently needs to declare a disaster in Wawa so the flooded northern Ontario community can access disaster funding, the area’s MPP said Thursday.
“(The community is) to a point where they’re extremely exhausted and there needs to be assistance that’s provided to them,” said NDP MPP Michael Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin).
Wawa declared a state of emergency last Friday after heavy flooding damaged homes and the highway so extensively it had to be closed and temporarily repaired with gravel. Some members of a nearby First Nation were evacuated.
Mantha said the province has sent officials and an engineer to the area to assess the damage. But he said it’s now time to declare a disaster to open up provincial funding for the community.
“What this community needs right now, the most important part . . . the minister needs to declare Wawa a disaster area,” said Mantha, who sent a letter with the request to Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Kathleen Wynne on Thursday.
“We need to move effectively and promptly,” he said.
Wawa’s council passed a resolution on Tuesday to ask for the disaster status, Mantha said, which needs to happen before the ministry can grant the status.
Wynne’s press secretary, Kelly Baker, said ministry officials are helping the town gather information for the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program request.
“A final decision can only be made once the full extent of the damages that are eligible under ODRAP are known,” Baker said in an email. “We will continue to work closely with municipal officials in Wawa to complete this work.”
It’s difficult to tell the financial and geographic extent of the damage because parts of the community have been impossible to reach, Mantha said, adding the affected area is expected to be more than 480 square kilometres.
Some cars were washed away and the local hospital has water in its basement, said Mantha, who visited the area over the weekend.
Money from the disaster program could help with repairs to the highway that allows people to travel to Sault Ste. Marie, Mantha said.
He said work is still being done on the highway but lanes have opened up in both directions"..........
cjborg 11/1/2012 6:47:48 PM ReportLets get the facts straight... the Province must be approached first then the Fed. Government by the Province....
The main problem in the north seems to be too much NDP inept representation ... politics at its worst... where was the NDP MPP and what helpful/timely guidance has he provided to the Wawa community???
............"The province urgently needs to declare a disaster in Wawa so the flooded northern Ontario community can access disaster funding, the area’s MPP said Thursday.
“(The community is) to a point where they’re extremely exhausted and there needs to be assistance that’s provided to them,” said NDP MPP Michael Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin).
Wawa declared a state of emergency last Friday after heavy flooding damaged homes and the highway so extensively it had to be closed and temporarily repaired with gravel. Some members of a nearby First Nation were evacuated.
Mantha said the province has sent officials and an engineer to the area to assess the damage. But he said it’s now time to declare a disaster to open up provincial funding for the community.
“What this community needs right now, the most important part . . . the minister needs to declare Wawa a disaster area,” said Mantha, who sent a letter with the request to Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Kathleen Wynne on Thursday.
“We need to move effectively and promptly,” he said.
Wawa’s council passed a resolution on Tuesday to ask for the disaster status, Mantha said, which needs to happen before the ministry can grant the status.
Wynne’s press secretary, Kelly Baker, said ministry officials are helping the town gather information for the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program request.
“A final decision can only be made once the full extent of the damages that are eligible under ODRAP are known,” Baker said in an email. “We will continue to work closely with municipal officials in Wawa to complete this work.”
It’s difficult to tell the financial and geographic extent of the damage because parts of the community have been impossible to reach, Mantha said, adding the affected area is expected to be more than 480 square kilometres.
Some cars were washed away and the local hospital has water in its basement, said Mantha, who visited the area over the weekend.
Money from the disaster program could help with repairs to the highway that allows people to travel to Sault Ste. Marie, Mantha said.
He said work is still being done on the highway but lanes have opened up in both directions"..........
mallet 11/1/2012 7:30:20 PM ReportOkay,
Hayes and Mantha how about a little pushing and bitching at the people concerned, if a major highway being washed out is not a disaster, then what is?? if a reserve being cut off from emergency services is not a disater what is?? I think the collective authorities need to remove their collective thumbs and help the town of WAWA, or in the words of Winston Churchill "Action this Day"..
speed7 11/1/2012 7:46:02 PM Report As far as Hayes is concerned, too much, too little, too late.
Thats about how far its going to go basically. Darn Conserve's
I'm In 11/1/2012 8:12:04 PM Reportcjborg: Who got you healthcare the PC's I think not, quit bashing the NDP you knob. Any government should not have to wait for a province to assist first in emergenices, the HST that we pay daily 5% of that goes to your PC buddies, so they should use their power to assist in situations like this right away, and further more this country is over governed so we don't need Hayes he is a waste of taxpayer money. President Obama didn't wait for each State to respond that was affected by Huricane Sandy, he went to those destructed areas right away and assisted.
hockey10 11/2/2012 9:01:51 AM Report110 individuals?? Smart ass!! I think it affected a lot more!!
CLT 11/2/2012 9:30:30 AM ReportI'm In
Please...You really think it would be different if the Liberals or NDP are in there. They are all politicians. It does not matter what flag they fly, they are all the same. And as far as Obama, the only reason he showed up is the election in a few days.
Ricatoni 11/2/2012 12:41:41 PM ReportThis is your pc response LOL to little to late...people like cjborg blab off at the lips but have know clue what they are talking about....The pc's dont give a rats behind about anyone north of Muskoka. That was made very clear during the summitt remember millions of dollars to fix roads,build ponds,etc etc..However they have no money or help for those in a disaster.absolutely a disgrace on part of the pc goverment.You selfish,greedy pc's can all just piss off we dont need your greedy ways in the North..PC'S = greedy selfish pigs who care only about themselves....pc politicians are the scum of the earth ....Get that brian hayes!!!!!!!!
speed7 11/2/2012 3:47:57 PM Report ricatoni, If you were referring to me I meant the PC's do not care. They never have? At least in my opinion. I think daulton responded faster than harper or hayes did. I dont see any improvements in our future with the PC's at all! The party of the rich corporates dont care about northern ontario. Just wanted to clear that up.
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