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Grey Highlands, Grey County declare state of emergency

Declaring a state of emergency allows council to act and make orders to protect residents and increase the municipality’s ability to share resources, personnel and equipment and respond to broader public needs.
2020_03_16 Grey Highlands municipal office_JG

With several of its lower-tier municipalities already declaring a state of emergency, Grey County followed suit yesterday.

Grey County declared a state of an emergency following the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A few hours prior to the county making the announcement, the municipality of Grey Highlands also declared a state of emergency, joining its neighbouring municipalities of West Grey, Meaford and the Town of the Blue Mountains who all declared a state of emergency earlier this week.

“The most pressing need for everyone in our community is to ensure public health and safety,” said Paul McQueen, mayor of the municipality of Grey Highlands and warden of Grey County. “It is imperative that all our residents self-isolate where possible, and practice physical distancing in all circumstances. I implore each and every one of you to heed the advice of our public health agencies. We each have a responsibility to protect the well-being of our family, neighbours and friends, and we will only mitigate the impact of COVID-19 if we do everything we can to stop the spread of the virus through self-isolation.”

Declaring a state of emergency allows council to act and make orders to protect residents and increase the municipality’s ability to share resources, personnel and equipment and respond to broader public needs.

It also allows the county to recruit and support volunteers to assist with emergency efforts if needed.

“Our staff have stepped up to the plate and are working hard to keep our municipal services going,” said Grey Highlands CAO, Karen Govan. “Our municipality is well-positioned to continue to serve the needs of our community, thanks to the dedication of our employees.”

Locally, the Grey Bruce Health Unit has confirmed six positive cases. For the most up-to-date local public health information, visit publichealthgreybruce.on.ca.

“I call on all of you to do your part, self-isolate, practice physical distancing and be there for one another, and I will do my best to help keep all of you safe as well,” said McQueen.

For more information about how Grey County is managing COVID-19, visit Grey.ca/Covid-19.

The Town of Collingwood has not declared a state of emergency. 


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Jennifer Golletz

About the Author: Jennifer Golletz

Jennifer Golletz covers civic matters under the Local Journalism Initative, which is funded by the Government of Canada
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