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CBCNews.ca readers slam government response to earthquake

by Community Team Posted: October 30, 2012 1:36 PM Last Updated: October 30, 2012 1:40 PM

Categories: Community

Critics say the B.C. government's response to last weekend's earthquake off Haida Gwaii was too slow and would not have been able to alert people in the event of a tsunami. 

Most of the CBC Community agreed that the first tsunami warning - a tweet from Emergency Information B.C. 39 minutes after the quake - did not come soon enough. 

  • A delay in an emergency situation can be life or death. Fortunately we were spared and there were no incidents. The Americans were on the ball. Shame on our government! This delay in response is not acceptable or excusable!" said realist649. 

  • "B.C. tsunami warning issued 42 minutes after the U.S. issued theirs. CFIA issued their E. coli advisory (XL Foods) many days after being alerted to it by the U.S. Twice. What is wrong with Canada?" asked GiveYourHeadAShake. 
Our commenters disagreed on whether Twitter was a suitable medium for issuing such alerts. 

  • "They announced it on Twitter? That makes perfect sense for anyone that just happens to follow them on Twitter. The other 99.9 per cent of the population I guess just waits for the first wave to hit," said BadTiger. 

  • "To be sure, but they issue a notice via Twitter first because it's the fastest and most direct way of reaching the most media outlets. They monitor Twitter," said moestooge333. 

  • A tweet? What's a tweet? This is the official method of warning the public? Within 10 minutes every single radio & TV station and every single public service (coast guard, police, municipalities, hospitals) should be alerted. A simple phone call. When did Twitter become an essential Canadian service? Is this a joke?" said Niko-in-Van. 

  • "How are you going to reach all those people with a single phone call, or multiple calls in 10 minutes? Oh, wait, I know a way: Twitter. And you can bet the media and public services are all tracking the various Twitter sources for each kind of emergency," said TimHicks. 

And there was some praise for our meteorologist in B.C. 

    • "A big thumbs up to CBC's Johanna Wagstaffe who stayed on the air and provided clear and concise updates and explanations. A breath of fresh air in world that sees more and more dumbing down of science," said Arctic Dude. 

Thanks for all your comments. Please continue the discussion in the comments below.

Tags: B.C., Community, Community Reaction