B.C. gets new earthquake alert system

British Columbians will receive an alert up to 10 seconds before an earthquake strikes, thanks to a new early warning system.

“By providing valuable seconds of warning, it will allow Canadians to take protective actions during an earthquake, including alerting people to ‘Drop, Cover, and Hold On,’” federal Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said in the Aug. 29 press release.

These early warnings can also give infrastructure operators time to take protective measures such as halting traffic from using bridges and tunnels, preventing planes from landing, stopping trains to prevent derailment and opening firehouse doors so emergency vehicles can more quickly respond to the aftermath of an earthquake, the announcement explains.

It will issue alerts to Canadians via cellphone, television and radio for earthquakes with a magnitude greater than five, the range where injury or damage is likely to occur, according to the federal government.

“British Columbia is more prone to earthquakes than anywhere else in Canada, and it’s important that we use the most advanced methods available to protect people across the province,” said B.C.’s Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Bowinn Ma in the press release.

Ma added that seismologists have been warning for decades of a major earthquake destined to occur in the province over the coming decades — the so-called “big one” — and the new system will give “crucial seconds” of warning.

On average, there are several thousand earthquakes recorded in B.C. each year, according to the province. Approximately 50 of those annual earthquakes are felt and those strong enough to cause structural damage occur an average of once per decade.

Earthquakes are also common along the St. Lawrence River and Ottawa River valleys in eastern Ontario and southern Quebec. Wilkinson said the early warning system will come online in those regions later this year. The new system is part of the federal government’s $36 million plan to develop a warning system to protect regions vulnerable to earthquakes.

— With files from the Canadian Press

Natasha Bulowski / Local Journalism Initiative / Canada’s National Observer