Draft Emergency Support Services Agreement
The detailed agreement for the joint ESS program including staffing, training, and budgetary commitments.
EMERGENCY SUPPORT SERVICES AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT made this ________ day of ________________, 2022
BETWEEN:
THE TOWN OF VIEW ROYAL 45 View Royal Ave Victoria, B.C. V9B 1A6 ("View Royal") OF THE FIRST PART
AND:
THE CITY OF COLWOOD 3300 Wishart Road Victoria, B.C. V9C 1R1 ("Colwood") OF THE SECOND PART
W H E R E A S:
A. Under the authority of section 23(1)(a) of the Community Charter, View Royal and Colwood may make agreements with a public authority respecting activities, and services within the powers of the party to the agreement, including the undertaking, provision and operation of activities, works and services;
B. View Royal and Colwood are each public authorities within the meaning of section 5 of the Community Charter;
C. View Royal and Colwood Councils are both local authorities as defined under the Emergency Program Act, with responsibility for preparing and implementing local Emergency Plans under that Act;
D. In order to ensure that emergency support services are available as part of their local Emergency Plan, View Royal and Colwood have agreed to enter into an agreement for the establishment of a joint View Royal and Colwood Emergency Support Services program subject to the terms and conditions contained in this Agreement;
E. The municipal Councils of View Royal and Colwood have by resolution approved this Agreement;
NOW THIS AGREEMENT WITNESSES that in consideration of the premises, the terms and conditions hereinafter contained, the sufficiency and receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, the parties covenant and agree each with the other as follows:
1.0 Definitions
1.1 For the purposes of this Agreement, the following definitions shall apply:
- “Disaster” has the meaning provided under the Emergency Program Act;
- “Emergency” has the meaning provided under the Emergency Program Act;
- “Emergency Co-ordinator” means the local government officer, employee, or appointee with responsibility for co-ordinating the implementation of the emergency plan of that local government;
- “Emergency Plan” means a local emergency plan within the meaning of the Emergency Program Act;
- “Emergency Support Services” means the services that are generally described in Part I of Schedule “A”;
- “Emergency Support Services Program” means a program for the planning, co-ordination and delivery of Emergency Support Services in response to a Disaster or Emergency as described in Part II of Schedule “A”.
2.0 Operation of Joint Emergency Support Services Program
2.1 View Royal and Colwood, through the sharing of resources outlined in this Agreement, will work cooperatively in the operation of a joint Emergency Support Services Program to provide Emergency Support Services to both municipalities and mutual aid to others during the term of this Agreement.
2.2 View Royal and Colwood will continue to create and implement such detailed policies, plans and strategies as are necessary for the efficient planning and delivery of Emergency Support Services in both municipalities.
3.0 Obligations and Contributions of View Royal and Colwood
3.1 During the term of this Agreement, View Royal, in consultation with Colwood as needed, will plan and supply the necessary staffing, resources and materials required to manage an effective Emergency Support Services program.
a) View Royal will be responsible for recruiting and providing the Director of the joint Emergency Support Services Team. The Director may come from either Colwood or View Royal. Deputy Directors will be selected by the ESS Director, and whenever possible, should be selected one from each municipality. b) View Royal will be responsible for managing the administration of the Emergency Support Services Program. This includes initiating and tracking expenditures, maintaining volunteer records, recruiting and registration of new volunteers, supporting training, and ensuring an annual activity report is provided for both municipal councils. c) Colwood will be responsible for providing support to the Emergency Support Services Program via their Emergency Coordinator, from time to time at the request of the ESS Director or the Emergency Coordinator from View Royal.
3.2 Each municipality is responsible for all costs associated with their respective emergency supply containers and facilities used for emergency operations.
3.3 During the term of this Agreement, View Royal and Colwood will make available such other staff and resources as are necessary for the planning and implementation of the joint Emergency Support Services program, as outlined in Schedule “A”.
3.4 The cost for any consumable supplies used in a training exercise will be shared jointly. The cost for any consumable supplies used or equipment damaged in an emergency response will be paid for by the municipality benefiting from the response.
3.5 View Royal will be responsible to administer the Emergency Support Services Program budget with each municipality to cost share equally. Funding will be used to cover costs of stipends to Directors and Deputy Directors, ESS clothing, training, conferences, travel, ESS specific resources, and administrative costs to manage volunteers to include, but not limited to, management of volunteer records, coordination of training, administration of recruitment, reporting of activities, advertising, financial management, and other activities in support of ESS.
3.6 Colwood and View Royal will fund the Emergency Support Services Program a total of $14,000 annually ($7,000 from each municipality) from 2022 to 2027 inclusive. View Royal will invoice Colwood before December 31 in advance of each year with payment due within 30 days of invoice. Funds not expended in any given year will be considered compensation to View Royal for indirect administrative and support costs. Conversely, any expenditures listed in para 3.5 beyond the $14,000 cost shared by both municipalities.
4.0 Term
4.1 This Agreement shall be in effect for a term of five (5) years commencing on the 1st day of August 2022 and expiring on 31st day of July 2027 unless otherwise terminated as provided herein.
5.0 Early Termination
5.1 Either party may terminate this Agreement at any time upon six (6) months notice in writing to the other party. Any funds received or owing at the date of termination will be billed or refunded on a prorated basis.
6.0 Indemnification
6.1 View Royal will at all times and does hereby indemnify, save harmless, release and forever discharge Colwood from and against all manner of actions, causes of action, claims, debts, suits, damages, demands and promises, at law or in equity, whether known or unknown, including without limitation for injury to persons or property including death, of any person directly or indirectly arising or resulting from or attributable to, any act, omission, negligence or default of View Royal in connection with or in consequence of this Agreement, save and except to the extent caused by any act, omission, negligence or default of Colwood, in which case Colwood will indemnify View Royal under section 6.2 of this Agreement.
6.2 Colwood will at all times and does hereby indemnify, save harmless, release and forever discharge View Royal from and against all manner of actions, causes of action, claims, debts suits, damages, demands and promises, at law or in equity, whether known or unknown, including without limitation for injury to persons or property including death, or any person directly or indirectly arising or resulting from, or attributable to, any act , omission, negligence or default of Colwood in connection with or in consequence of this Agreement, save and except to the extent caused by any act, omission, negligence or default of View Royal, in which case View Royal will indemnify Colwood under section 6.1 of this Agreement.
7.0 Annual Review
7.1 At least 30 days prior to the end of each calendar year during which this Agreement is in effect, View Royal, with assistance when required from Colwood Emergency Program staff, will conduct a review of this Agreement and the services being provided hereunder, to ensure that Emergency Support Services are being provided in a mutually satisfactory manner, and to determine whether the Emergency Support Program is meeting the objectives of this Agreement and of the parties in respect of their budgetary and fiscal objectives.
7.2 An annual report will be provided to the respective Councils of View Royal and Colwood outlining the activities, successes, and challenges involved with the joint team. The report will also include statistical data detailing overview of expenditures, training, callouts, meetings, and general work conducted by the ESS Team.
8.0 Implementation of Emergency Plans
8.1 View Royal and Colwood will each remain responsible for the preparation and implementation of their respective Municipal Emergency Plans.
8.2 Without limiting the generality of section 8.1, where necessary as a result of an Emergency or Disaster, Emergency Support Services under this Agreement will be delivered in response to a request by the Colwood or View Royal Emergency Co-ordinator or Fire Department Officers for the municipality within which the Emergency or Disaster has occurred.
9.0 Notice
9.1 Any notice or other writing required or permitted to be given under this Agreement will be deemed to be sufficiently given if delivered personally, or if sent by prepaid courier or if transmitted by facsimile to such party:
to View Royal: Corporate Officer 45 View Royal Ave Victoria, B.C. V9B 1A6 Fax: 250-727-9551
to Colwood: Corporate Officer 3300 Wishart Road Victoria, B.C. V9C 1R1 Fax: 250-478-7516
10.0 Time
10.1 Time shall be of the essence of this Agreement.
11.0 Assignment
11.1 This Agreement shall not be assigned by either of the parties hereto except with the prior written consent of the other which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld.
12.0 Binding Effect
12.1 This Agreement will enure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective heirs, administrators, executors, successors, and permitted assignees.
13.0 Waiver
13.1 The waiver by a party of any failure on the part of the other party to perform in accordance with any of the terms or conditions of this Agreement is not to be construed as a waiver of any future or continuing failure, whether similar or dissimilar.
14.0 Headings
14.1 The headings in this Agreement are inserted for convenience and reference only and in no way define, limit or enlarge the scope or meaning of this Agreement or any provision of it.
15.0 Language
15.1 Wherever the singular, masculine and neuter are used throughout this Agreement, the same is to be construed as meaning the plural or the feminine or the body corporate or politic as the context so requires.
16.0 Law Applicable
16.1 This Agreement is to be construed in accordance with and governed by the laws applicable in the Province of British Columbia.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the parties hereto have set their hands and seals as of the day and year first above written.
The Corporate Seal of THE TOWN OF VIEW ROYAL was hereunto affixed on the ____ day of _______________ 2022 in the presence of:
Mayor, Sid Tobias
Corporate Officer, Sarah Jones
(seal)
The Corporate Seal of THE CITY OF COLWOOD was hereunto affixed on the ____ day of _______________ 2022 in the presence of:
Mayor, Doug Kobayashi
Chief Administrative Officer, Robert Earl
(seal)
SCHEDULE “A”
EMERGENCY SUPPORT SERVICES AGREEMENT
PART I – Emergency Support Services
Section 2(3)(f) of the Local Authority Emergency Management Regulation provides that, as part of the local Emergency Plan prepared under section 62 of the Emergency Program Act, a local government must:
“Coordinate the provision of food, clothing, shelter, transportation and medical services to victims of emergencies and disasters, whether that provision is made from within or outside of the local authority.”
For the purposes of this Agreement, Emergency Support Services therefore means the provision of food, clothing, shelter, transportation and provision of medical services to victims of emergencies and disasters within the municipalities of View Royal and Colwood.
PART II – Emergency Support Services Program
- The joint Emergency Support Services Program of View Royal and Colwood will provide for the joint planning, co-ordination and delivery of Emergency Support Services in the municipalities of View Royal and Colwood, in keeping with the following general principles:
Planning
There will be a combined team approach to developing plans, including Reception Centres, Group Lodging, Emergency Support Services Department Operations Centres, and Level 1 ESS teams.
The combined ESS membership will be cross-trained to be able to perform different Emergency Support Services functions.
The Emergency Support Services team will be flexible, giving the ability to respond to a wide scale of events from Level 1 ESS calls to large scale emergencies.
Supplier agreements, community partnerships, community resource inventory and agreements will be put in place, as outlined by applicable Provincial Emergency Program Guidelines.
Reception Centre and Emergency Support Service Department Operations Centre sites will be identified and secured with user agreements. Locations are determined by each municipality for their respective jurisdiction.
Staffing
Emergency Support Services team members and team leaders will be recruited from both municipalities in order to ensure continuity of service in the event of emergencies.
The View Royal - Colwood Emergency Support Service team will be unified. The ideal situation is to have one or more fully trained and qualified Deputies reside in each municipality. Efforts will be made to recruit, screen, and train qualified ESS leadership that reside in both View Royal and Colwood.
Meetings
Regular monthly combined ESS team meetings will be held except for July, August and December. Planning meetings will be convened as frequently as needed.
Training
The Emergency Support Services Director with support from Deputy Directors and Emergency Program staff will co-ordinate local and regional ESS training for members of the combined ESS team.
Regular exercises will be developed and take place in both municipalities a minimum of once annually.