The province is recognizing disaster emergency leadership in High Level for helping ensure northwestern communities are better prepared and protected during a disaster or emergency.
Since 2015, the Alberta Emergency Management Achievement Award has recognized individuals and groups who have made remarkable contributions towards building a better prepared and more disaster-resilient community.
“When faced with a disaster, innovation, ingenuity and collaboration within and between communities are essential to ensuring Albertans are prepared and protected. The Alberta Emergency Management Achievement Award is about recognizing that spirit and I’m very proud of this year’s recipient.”
~Shaye Anderson, Minister of Municipal Affairs
This year, Fire Chief Rodney Schmidt and the Town of High Level are being recognized for their development of incident management teams that can be deployed at a moment’s notice to support emergency operations, such as wildfire suppression and response within the region.
“I am honoured to receive this award. The Regional Incident Management Team process is one that is important to me and our region. This team will help provide critical immediate assistance to communities in crisis and I am thankful to AEMA for the support of this team.”
~Rodney Schmidt, Fire Chief, High Level
Chief Schmidt was presented with the award at the annual Alberta Emergency Management Agency Stakeholder Summit in Edmonton. The summit brings together more than 500 emergency management professionals from across the province to share information and learn from leading experts in the field.
During the summit, the Alberta Emergency Management Agency launched the #PrepareYourSelfie challenge. The challenge encourages Albertans to put together a 72-hour emergency kit and share a photo of it on social media.
Quick facts
- 72-hour kits allow families or individuals to be self-sufficient for three days, in the event of an emergency.
- Kits should contain non-perishable food, water, medication, warm clothing and comfort items.