Majority of Calgary businesses had emergency plans before flooding, but gaps in communication: poll

A majority of Calgary-based businesses reported having had effective emergency plans prior to the major flooding that hit the city this past summer, but gaps remain, according to a poll from Ipsos Reid.

The polling firm conducted 50 phone interviews in September with Calgary-based businesses that have 100 or more employees in Alberta and that were directly impacted by the flooding.

Of those surveyed, 80% said they have had an emergency plan prior to the flooding this year, and 81% rated their plans as effective.

The majority of those surveyed (94%) said that the focus of communications during the event was to alert employees of the operating status of the business, Ipsos Reid noted. The focus was also on ensuring employees’ safety.

However, among those who said their plans were effective, only 19% said they were able to reach employees or communicate well, and 9% said people knew what to do in an emergency, according to Ipsos Reid.

Less than half (44%) of those with emergency plans also had emergency communication plans included, and only 20% said that contact lists were included. Only 44% also said they updated their emergency response plans after this summer’s flooding, according to the poll.

“Email and manual calling were used by the majority of organizations (92% and 84%, respectively) for communications with employees or partners during the flood,” Ipsos Reid said.

“Among those who use email for emergency communications, 85% said it was an effective tool. Among those who used manual calling for emergency communications, 81% said it was an effective tool.”

About half (51%) of those who don’t currently use mobile notification tools for communication with employees for emergencies also plan to integrate those tools in the next two years, Ipsos Reid said.

Among those who said their plans were ineffective, 67% said they had gaps in contact information.

Overall, 92% of those surveyed reported having their commute to work disrupted by the flood event, while 86% closed one or more of their premises, according to Ipsos Reid.

A majority (90%) also had at least one employee evacuated from their home, and 80% of those surveyed said they had at least one employee whose home had been flooding, according to the poll.