A state of emergency occurs when any level of government assumes authority it does not generally possess to respond to a crisis. This is done by invoking said authority under specific legislation, and permits the government to expend funds, mobilize forces, or suspend civil liberties.
The Canadian government has declared a state of emergency four times, three in the 20th century and under the authority of the War Measures Act and one under the Emergencies Act. Under the War Measures, the three declared were:
In 1988, Parliament replaced the War Measures Act with the Emergencies Act, which extended the powers beyond war applications. The sole application has been:
Historically, states of emergency have been declared by provinces for internal issues. Save for the 2004 White Juan Blizzard, until 2020 there had never been a situation where multiple provinces made a province wide declaration. This changed during the COVID-19 pandemic where every province and territory made the declaration, opposing similar measures from the federal government. Every province has the ability to assume emergency powers under either a specific emergency act or under a public health act. In some provinces, like British Columbia, both exist and can grant specific authorities. British Columbia's Civil Defence Act[1] was enacted in 1951 and renamed the Emergency Program Act in 1973.[2]
| Year | Event | Province/Territory | Under the Authority of |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | River flood | British Columbia[3][4] | Army Act (UK)[5] |
| 1966 | Ferry Strike | Prince Edward Island | Emergency Measures Act[6] |
| 1989 | Forest Fires | Manitoba[7] | |
| 1999 | Snow Storm | Quebec[8] | |
| 2003 | SARS outbreak | Ontario | Emergency Management Act[9] |
| Wildfires | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[10] | |
| Northeast blackout | Ontario | Emergency Management Act[11] | |
| 2004 | White Juan blizzard | Nova Scotia | Emergency Measures Act[12] |
| Prince Edward Island | Emergency Measures Act[12] | ||
| 2011 | Floods | Manitoba | Emergency Measures Act[13] |
| 2013 | Floods | Alberta | Emergency Management Act[14] |
| 2014 | Assiniboine River flood | Manitoba | Emergency Measures Act [15][16] |
| 2016 | Fort McMurray wildfire | Alberta | Emergency Management Act[17] |
| Opioid epidemic | British Columbia | Public Health Act[18][19] | |
| 2017 | Wildfires | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[10][20][21] |
| 2018 | Wildfires | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[22] |
| 2019 | Snow storm | Manitoba | Emergency Measures Act[15][16][23] |
| Year | Event | Province/Territory | Under the Authority of |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | COVID-19 pandemic | Alberta [a] | Public Health Act[24][25] |
| British Columbia | Emergency Program Act and Public Health Act[18][26] | ||
| Manitoba | Emergency Measures Act[27] | ||
| New Brunswick | Emergency Measures Act[26][28] | ||
| Newfoundland and Labrador | Public Health Protection and Promotion Act[26] | ||
| Nova Scotia | Health Protection Act[29][30] | ||
| Ontario [b] | Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act[31][32] | ||
| Prince Edward Island | Public Health Act[33] | ||
| Quebec | Public Health Act[34][35] | ||
| Saskatchewan | Emergency Planning Act[26] | ||
| Northwest Territories | Public Health Act[26] | ||
| Nunavut | Public Health Act[36] | ||
| Yukon | Civil Emergency Measures Act[37][38] | ||
| 2021 | Wildfires | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[39][40] |
| COVID-19 pandemic | Ontario | Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act[41] | |
| Nova Scotia | Health Protection Act[42] | ||
| New Brunswick | Emergency Measures Act[43] | ||
| Alberta | Public Health Act[44] | ||
| Pacific Northwest floods | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[45] | |
| 2022 | Freedom Convoy protest | Ontario | Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act[46] |
| 2023 | Wildfires | British Columbia | Emergency Program Act[47] |
| Alberta | Emergency Management Act[48] | ||
| Northwest Terriitories | Emergency Management Act[49] | ||
| Floods | Nova Scotia | Emergency Management Act[50] |