The Door-to-Door Home Flood Risk Reduction Campaign

1.  This spring, Canadian Red Cross volunteers are coming door-to-door to communities in Ottawa and Renfrew County to provide information to increase awareness of flood risks for residents.

  • The Red Cross is working with Canadians to strengthen their resilience before, during and after disasters. The Door-to-Door Home Flood Risk Reduction Campaign aims to increase awareness of flood risks to promote actions that support household level risk reduction and emergency preparedness.
  • The learnings from this project will be incorporated into future outreach activities so that all Canadians can reduce their risk and build their emergency readiness capacity and resilience.
  • The campaign is delivered to select areas within the communities of West Carleton (Constance Bay), and Renfrew County (City of Pembroke, Whitewater and Laurentian Valley) through April and May 2022.
  • The Door-to-Door Home Flood Risk Reduction Campaign is part of the Inclusive Resilience project, an initiative funded by Public Safety Canada.

2.  The Red Cross, the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation at the University of Waterloo and Public Safety Canada are partnering with municipalities to raise awareness of local flood risks and to encourage action before disaster strikes.

  • Climate change and extreme weather events are on the rise in Canada, bringing ever- increasing costs to governments, businesses, and Canadians.
  • Flooding has emerged as the most pervasive and costly disaster in the country, creating financial and mental health impacts to Canadians across many regions.
  • Whether residents rent or own, residents are responsible for managing the risks to privately owned property such as homes and personal belongings.

3.  Red Cross volunteers will be in Renfrew County (City of Pembroke, Whitewater and Laurentian Valley) from May 28 - 29 with flood risk reduction information to assist residents to prepare their homes. This information is provided to residents in partnership with the local municipality.

  • The neighborhoods in Renfrew County have experienced the impact of climate change and flooding events caused by spring snow melt and prolonged rainfall.
  • Vulnerable areas that have been impacted include residential neighbourhoods, roads and existing stormwater infrastructure.
  • Insurance typically does not cover all costs associated with flood damage. In response, residents and governments are increasingly looking for practical and cost-effective means to reduce the financial and mental health impacts of home flood risk.

4.  The Door-to-Door Home Flood Risk Reduction Campaign is provided through the Inclusive Resilience project for the communities in West Carleton and Renfrew County.

  • Before, during and after disasters, the Canadian Red Cross works with Canadians to strengthen their resilience to disasters. Funded by the Government of Canada through Public Safety Canada, the Inclusive Resilience: Reducing Disaster Risk for Canadians project seeks to increase awareness of disaster risks and promote inclusive approaches, tools and actions that foster inclusive disaster risk reduction (DRR) and emergency preparedness among Canadians.
  • The Inclusive Resilience project is a four-year learning initiative, funded by Public Safety Canada’s Emergency Management Public Awareness Contribution Program and will be completed in March 2024.
  • The project is implemented by the Canadian Red Cross in partnership with our Subject- Matter Expert (SME) Partners – FireSmart Canada, Partners for Action (University of Waterloo), and the BC Earthquake Alliance, Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, and Community Partners
  • The project seeks to identify the most effective means to increase awareness of wildfires, earthquakes, and floods and of practical actions to prepare for these natural hazards among under-served and under-resourced populations.
  • We are trying to learn the best ways to encourage women, seniors, newcomers, Indigenous Peoples, and Canadians from low-income households to prepare for wildfires, floods and/or earthquakes by identifying innovative ways to engage these groups.

Contact information

For questions about the Door-to-Door Campaign in Renfrew County, please contact:

Canadian Red Cross

National / ON media line: 1-877-599-9602

For questions about the Inclusive Resilience project, please contact: Jennifer Kirk

Communications Manager Canadian Red Cross jennifer.kirk@redcross.ca 613-402-6146