7.1. Training

Under the provisions of the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act (EMCPA) and Order in Council (OIC) 1021/2025, every minister is responsible for conducting emergency management training programs and exercises to ensure the readiness of Crown employees and other persons to act under their respective ministry emergency plans.

Similarly, under the EMCPA all municipalities are responsible for conducting emergency management training programs and exercises to ensure the readiness of employees of the municipality and other persons to act under their municipal emergency response plan.

Members of each ministry action group and municipal emergency control group (MECG) shall complete the annual training determined by the Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response (MEPR).

MEPR shall develop and deliver Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (PEOC) specific training for MEPR staff and other provincial representatives who are expected to be deployed in the PEOC. MEPR may provide advice and assistance to ministries and municipalities for the development of their emergency management training programs.

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is responsible for the development and delivery of training for First Nations on the development of emergency plans and other emergency preparedness activities.

7.2. Exercises

The Provincial Emergency Response Plan (PERP) should be tested in an exercise on an annual basis.

MEPR is responsible for coordinating a risk-based comprehensive provincial exercise program, consisting of:

  • policy for developing an exercise program.
  • processes for programming, planning, conducting, evaluating and reporting on exercises, as well as a corrective action program.
  • a range of exercise activities of varying degrees of complexity and interaction.

Ministry action groups and MECGs shall conduct an annual exercise for a simulated emergency incident to evaluate respective ministry and municipal emergency plans and procedures (section 3 (7), Ontario Regulation (O. Reg) 380/04). If deemed necessary by the applicable ministry or municipality, following an exercise, ministries and municipalities should revise their procedures and emergency plans accordingly to incorporate post-exercise evaluations and after-action review feedback (section 3 (8), O. Reg 380/04).

7.3. After-action reviews

7.3.1. Provincial after-action reviews

MEPR shall conduct a provincial after-action review after any emergency that has the provincial response level raised to activation for a prolonged period. Additionally, MEPR may direct a provincial after-action review be conducted after any emergency. A provincial after-action review should be completed within 6 months of the end of termination of response activities.

The purpose of a provincial-level after-action review is to examine the performance of the provincial emergency response organization (ERO) and the effectiveness of the PERP. It will focus on how the organizations worked with each other, rather than the individual performance of each organization. The review should collect information and feedback from every provincial organization that was active in the provincial ERO during the emergency.

The conduct of the after-action review shall be commensurate with the level of complexity and impact of the emergency, but could include any combination of the following:

  • documentation reviews (including logs, information products, emails, and more).
  • online surveys.
  • workshops or facilitated group discussions with individuals and organizations who were involved during the emergency response.
  • interviews with individuals involved in the emergency response.
  • solicitation of written submissions from partner organizations.

This review should be focused on the whole-of-government response, and should include at a minimum consideration for:

  • a timeline of how the emergency progressed.
  • key decisions made at the provincial level.
  • an evaluation of the effectiveness of the PERP.
  • major gaps in provincial capabilities and any unaddressed liabilities or risks.
  • any best practices that should be carried forward.

After-action review reports should be shared with pertinent organizations for the purpose of self-improvement. Special consideration should be given to prevention, mitigation and preparedness measures that can be implemented to improve provincial resilience.

MEPR, should share any lessons identified through after-action reports with emergency management stakeholders in Ontario to support their continuous improvement.

 

MEPR shall develop a corrective action or improvement plan to address gaps, best practices, and opportunities for improvement identified through these after-action reports.

MEPR shall administer a process to track and report on all corrective action or improvement plans, and report to stakeholders on an annual basis.

7.3.2. Organization-specific after-action reporting

Each organization involved in emergency response should conduct after-action reviews focused on their own organization-specific response and their own emergency plans. All organizations should strive to share lessons from their after-action reviews with others who may benefit from it.

Recommendations specific to the PEOC and associated procedures are the responsibility of MEPR.

7.4. Government reporting on declared emergencies

The EMCPA has requirements for the Premier and the Commissioner of Emergency Management (CEM) to make reports based on any emergency orders that were made following the declaration of an emergency.

MEPR shall support the development of these reports where required, including providing detailed records from the PEOC as required.