BC extends provincial state of emergency for another two weeks

The BC government announced on Tuesday it has formally extended the provincial state of emergency that has been in effect since mid-March.

The state of emergency is extended through the end of the day on November 24, 2020.

A provincial declaration of a state of emergency allows the province to implement provincial emergency measures and allows access to assets that may be necessary to prevent, respond to or alleviate the effects of an emergency. This is a temporary measure authorized by the Emergency Program Act.

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The extension of the provincial state of emergency is based on recommendations from BC’s health and emergency management officials. The original declaration was made on March 18, 2020, the day after Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry declared a public health emergency.

On July 10, the COVID-19 Related Measures Act came into force, enabling provisions created for citizens and businesses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to continue as needed should the provincial state of emergency end.