Steinbach Emergency Coordinator Dennis Vassart says the city's emergency plan is being revised yet again. He explains the changes are necessary because of the city's annexation of 2,800 acres from the RM of Hanover which took effect January 1st. But Vassart adds the task has been made easier by the fact he is also emergency coordinator for the RM of Hanover and therefore has a lot of knowledge about the area that was annexed.

Vassart notes updates to the emergency plan are something that happens quite frequently.

Dennis Vassart"The written copies and the stuff that gets posted on the website are only updates once a year. My working document has got changes in it, as a matter of fact, we've already got changes in store for the 2019 issue of the emergency plan, so there are always changes happening. We try and stay on top of new hazards that are coming up. We work with the fire department and other city departments to try and make sure that we are staying as current as we can."

Vassart says the city treats the emergency plan like an insurance plan; it's something you need but hope to never use.

In an update to city council last week, Vassart also outlined some of the other changes he is taking into account.

"There are changes in the Local Authorities Emergency Planning and Preparedness Regulation that make having a Business Continuity Plan for the City a part of the Emergency Preparedness program. There are also new requirements for Municipal Emergency Coordinators as well as changes to the Emergency Preparedness program that EMO is working on getting in place."