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Northwest Territories

• Preventing Injury and Drowing

Canadian Red Cross in Northwest Territories

While the Canadian Red Cross does not maintain an office in North West Territories, we do actively help residents to prepare for and respond to disasters, and to build safer communities for everyone.

Injury Prevention
Abuse Prevention

Responding to disasters

In the event of a disaster requiring Red Cross assistance, call Cell Phone (867) 444-0426 in NWT.

Emergency preparedness is more than the reaction to a disaster; it starts with prevention and preparation, so that agencies, communities and individuals are ready to respond should a disaster of any kind strike. After a disaster, a recovery phase is crucial, and usually continues for longer than the actual disaster. The emergency preparedness system in North West Territories covers these four phases. The Government of Northwest Territories is responsible for the disaster plan. Many departments and agencies are involved in this plan, and trained Red Cross responders are available to assist. For an updated copy of the new NWT Disaster Services Plan available at http://www.maca.gov.nt.ca/     

If you are interested in becoming a Disaster Response volunteer in NWT, or in learning more about preparing for and responding to disasters, contact Danielle Trudeau at (403) 261-6237 or danielle.trudeau@redcross.ca. For assistance following a personal disaster such as a house fire, please contact our Western Zone On-Call team at 1-888-800-6493.

Preventing Abuse

RespectED, the Red Cross Violence and abuse prevention service, has been working with the Junior Canadian Rangers (JCR) for many years to deliver PHASE—Preventing Harassment and Abuse through Successful Education—in northern communities. PHASE provides everyone involved in JCR with trained help in dealing with any form of harassment, abuse of authority, neglect or abuse, whether emotional, physical or sexual. RespectED Prevention Educators travel into communities and train members of the Ranger patrol to be PHASE facilitators.  Every community with a Junior Canadian Ranger patrol has a PHASE facilitator, who is familiar with where to turn in their communities for help.

In 2004, RespectED began partnering with an Inuvik Interagency Committee. The committee had identified bullying as one priority that needed attention in the community. While bullying and harassment is addressed through school policies, the committee felt that increased awareness was important. A trained RespectED facilitator travelled from B.C to offer student presentations on abuse and bullying, as well as a professional development day for teachers and other school staff. Both the educators and the students took part in coming up with solutions, and came together to begin creating a better, safer community.

That week, a well-attended public session was also held at the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex. The evening provided information to community members, and served as a building block for further discussion about bullying.

Walking the Prevention Circle: This workshop examines violence and abuse issues from an Aboriginal perspective. Historical and cultural factors are discussed, and participants are invited to explore how traditional Aboriginal principles can be coupled with the Fundamental Red Cross principles to help end the tragic legacy of violence. For more information, contact Shelley Cardinal at 250-995-3508.

Learn more about RespectED's OnLine training»

To enquire about any RespectED program from North West Territories, contact Sarah Smith: sarah.smith@redcross.ca.