Yellowknife has a subarctic climate, which means in addition to potentially facing emergencies like pandemics, chemical spills or plane crashes, our community is also susceptible to emergencies caused by extreme weather conditions. For example, in the winter, residents may experience power outages or have their pipes freeze in -30°C weather or colder. During the summer months, wildfires are a real concern. To relieve stress in the face of an emergency, familiarize yourself with the types of emergencies that could arise and plan ahead.
The City is proud to introduce Voyent Alert!. This emergency notification system is designed to keep you informed and safe. Whether there is wildfire, extreme weather, or community-wide emergencies, Voyent Alert! sends real-time updates from the City of Yellowknife straight to your phone and/or email inbox. The email notification system previously in place will continue to function until the end of 2025, after which time it will be phased out. Sign up for Voyent Alert! to make sure you don’t miss any critical alerts.
Community Emergency Plan |
The City of Yellowknife has a Community Emergency Plan which enhances the coordination of resources to prepare, mitigate, respond to and recover from major emergencies or disasters. This plan is prepared with an all-hazards approach and a wide scope to allow flexible response to any emergency. The Community Emergency Plan was updated, as part of the annual review and validation, and based on the 2024 NWT Emergency Plan. In the event of a major emergency or disaster, the City would activate its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), where critical staff would work together to carry out the planning and operations involved in managing an emergency.
More information on emergency preparedness, including the NWT Emergency Management Act, can be found on the GNWT’s website. |
Evacuation Plan |
In addition to the Community Emergency Plan, the City of Yellowknife has developed an all-hazards Evacuation Plan. This plan, which is a companion document to the Community Emergency Plan, would be implemented by the City in the event of an emergency situation (like a wildfire) causing residents to evacuate. More evacuation information can be found within the wildfire section of our website. |
Communications during an emergency |
During an emergency, important messages will be relayed to residents via media releases, the City’s Facebook page, as well as other methods as required. Wildfire updates will be posted on our website. When seeking information, always ensure to reference reliable sources. In the event there is an emergency involving third party service providers, like a power outage, information will be provided by the utility company directly responsible (e.g. Naka Power, the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, or NorthwesTel). The City of Yellowknife would amplify messaging from third parties, sharing any information that is important for the safety of residents. For health-related emergencies, either the Chief Public Health Officer, or another representative from the territorial government's Department of Health and Social Services, will be the responsible party for distributing information. In this case, the City and other government departments will provide assistance. The City is proud to introduce Voyent Alert!. This emergency notification system is designed to keep you informed and safe. Whether there is wildfire, extreme weather, or community-wide emergencies, Voyent Alert! sends real-time updates from the City of Yellowknife straight to your phone and/or email inbox. The email notification system previously in place will continue to function until the end of 2025, after which time it will be phased out. Sign up for Voyent Alert! to make sure you don’t miss any critical alerts. |
Preparing for an emergency |
Before an emergency happens, you and your family can take a number of steps to be more prepared. Check out the Personal Preparedness Guide to find a checklist of small actions that will increase your resilience.
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Wildfire information |
In the event of a wildfire, the Environment and Climate Change Forest Management Division of the GNWT will relay information related to wildfire risk and behavior to the City. Based on this information, the City will communicate updates and public directives within the wildfire updates section of our website. This section also contains general information on how to prepare for wildfires and an evacuation, as well as health and safety tips for poor air quality. Wildfire updates will also be provided on the GNWT and NWT Fire websites.
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Winter power outages |
Simple steps can be taken to ensure that you and your family are prepared for a winter power outage. Check out these helpful tips on how to prepare yourself, your home and your business for a power outage as well as information on water line freeze protection. |