The Sunshine Coast’s long-serving emergency program coordinator has resigned.
Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) chief administrative officer Janette Loveys confirmed Aug. 9 that Bill Elsner submitted his resignation earlier in the week.
In a statement to Coast Reporter, Loveys thanked Elsner for his service to the community and wished him and his family well.
She did not offer any reasons for Elsner’s departure and he has not commented on the matter either.
Loveys did not say when the search for a replacement would begin or whether the SCRD is planning to make any changes to the position or the structure of the emergency program.
“The SCRD emergency program has many qualified volunteers, community partners and local government staff and continues to operate effectively,” Loveys said in her statement.
“Since June, the role of Emergency Program Coordinator has been filled temporarily by [Gibsons Fire] Chief Rob Michael supported by Deputy Coordinator Bruce Searle. This is not unusual in any way and has frequently occurred in the past when staff were on assignment and on various leaves. In the event of emergency of any size, we have confidence that the needs of an EOC and our community will be met.”
According to the 2017 annual report, the Sunshine Coast Emergency Program was one of the first regional emergency programs in the province.
Elsneris well known to the public through his efforts to promote and teach preparedness, especially for the situation he considered the highest risk for the Sunshine Coast – an urban interface wildfire.
He oversaw the emergency operations centre in July of 2015 when that risk hit home as the Old Sechelt Mine Fire burned 430 hectares of forest, forced the evacuation of homes at Carlson Point, and claimed the life of a tree faller working with the fire crews.
As well as overseeing emergency preparedness on the Sunshine Coast, Elsner was often called to assist other communities with their emergency response centres, including during the 2017 wildfires in the Interior when he went to the Cariboo Regional District and helped plan the evacuation of Williams Lake.
The SCRD is current working on a new strategic plan for its fire departments: Gibsons, Roberts Creek, Halfmoon Bay and Egmont.
Loveys said it is part of the periodic strategic plan reviews the SCRD does for all its operations “to review and evaluate program delivery to ensure the public good is served.”
She also said the SCRD is reviewing the Auditor General for Local Government’s March 2018 report on emergency management. “The SCRD has reviewed those documents and their recommendations alongside ways in which we can improve our emergency management program,” she said.
