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Independent operators
Canada
Response coordinated around federal and provincial activation.
Canadian emergency management is coordinated by Public Safety Canada's Government Operations Centre, working with provinces and territories that lead most of the response themselves. ERNA stages equipment against that structure, and can draw on US or Mexican partner capacity when needed.
Start here
Find your section.
I'm a government agency
Declaration triggers, key federal bodies, and how to request equipment.
I'm a service provider
Coverage needs, the sourcing model, and how to list equipment.
I need help right now
Call 911. ERNA coordinates logistics behind the scenes — it isn't a direct emergency response line.
Declaration system
How a Canadian response is triggered.
Canada does not run a single federal response agency the way the US runs FEMA. Emergency management is led by provinces and territories, with the federal government stepping in through Public Safety Canada when a province is overwhelmed or an event is of national significance.
| Trigger | Scope | ERNA role |
|---|---|---|
| Provincial/territorial emergency declaration | Province or territory | Monitor and open request intake for that jurisdiction |
| Government Operations Centre federal activation | National or multi-province | Coordinate response across affected jurisdictions |
| Emergencies Act invocation | National (rare, high bar) | Full network activation across all staged capacity |
ERNA is a private response and logistics network, not part of Public Safety Canada or the Government of Canada. We monitor public activations and coordinate with the agencies managing each response.
Key agencies
Who ERNA's Canadian response is built around.
Public Safety Canada coordinates federal-level activation, but several other federal bodies own specific hazard types and provide the technical authority behind a declaration.
Agency
Public Safety Canada / GOC
May respond to
- Coordinates federal response and monitors national-scale events around the clock
- Earthquake, explosive, and critical-infrastructure coordination across provinces
Agency
Health Canada
May respond to
- Leads Canada's Federal Nuclear Emergency Plan
- Nuclear and radiological incident coordination
Agency
CNSC
May respond to
- Regulates nuclear facilities and materials nationwide
- Technical authority on nuclear and radiological safety
Agency
CIFFC
May respond to
- Coordinates wildfire resource-sharing among provinces and territories
- Wildfire mutual aid and cross-provincial crew deployment
Agency
Canadian Centre for Cyber Security
May respond to
- Leads national cyber incident response and critical-infrastructure cyber-defense
- Critical infrastructure/cyber-physical incidents
Agency
RCMP
May respond to
- Federal law-enforcement lead for explosive devices and national-security incidents
- Coordinates scene security ahead of search-and-rescue and medical response
Agencies listed are examples of who may be involved in a given scenario, not a guarantee of jurisdiction or activation for any specific event — ERNA is a private logistics network and does not represent, direct, or speak for any of these agencies.
Coverage explorer
See where partner capacity exists.
A live look at capability coverage across Canada, filterable by hazard type. Useful whether you're checking what's available before a request, or seeing where your own equipment would fit in.
SAMPLE DATA — ILLUSTRATIVE
9
Partner companies
58
Ambulances listed
Generators listed95 units
Combined transport capacity~45 patients per surge cycle
Shelter-kit capacity~2,100 people (FEMA P-361, 5 sq ft/person)
Common certificationsPCP/ACP certification, Class 4 driver license, Hazmat Endorsement, ICS-100/200
Cross-border licensed9 of 22 independent operators also licensed to operate in the US
Illustrative sample data, not live counts.
Map data adapted from Simple World Map (Al MacDonald / Fritz Lekschas), CC BY-SA 3.0.
Emergency scenario
Select an emergency scenario above to see regulatory options.
Regulatory scenario
Select an agency above to see its coverage area.
Coverage area
None of Canada's other listed agencies use Public Safety Canada's default map exactly — select an agency to see its own.
Public Safety Canada regions
RCMP Federal Policing regionsused instead of Public Safety Canada's 5 regions
Health Canada / PHAC regionsused instead of Public Safety Canada's 5 regions
CIFFC coordinates through direct province/territory member agencies (13 in total) rather than a fixed regional map — the regions above are a general reference, not CIFFC's actual structure.
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security operates as a single centralized national body with no regional tier — the regions above are a general reference, not its actual structure.
CNSC's regional presence follows nuclear facility locations (Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, plus site offices at each power plant), not a population-based regional map — the regions above are a general reference, not CNSC's actual structure.
Sample counties/municipios in Atlantic (illustrative)
Sample counties/municipios in Quebec & Nunavut (illustrative)
Sample counties/municipios in Ontario (illustrative)
Sample counties/municipios in Prairies & NWT (illustrative)
Sample counties/municipios in Pacific (BC & Yukon) (illustrative)
Select a coverage area above to see response scenario options.
Response scenario
A grouped view of the same categories used on the home page — Medical maps to Public Health & Medical, Engineering to Public Works & Energy, Mass Care to Mass Care & Housing, and Search & Rescue and Hazmat carry across directly. Selections made here mean the same thing there.
Select any combination of locations, hazards, response types, or agencies above — or tap a marker on the map — to see what's active in Canada.
Coverage shown here is illustrative of the network structure, not a live partner count — actual matches depend on your account and the specific request. Agencies listed are examples of who may be involved, not a guarantee of jurisdiction or activation for any specific event — ERNA is a private logistics network and does not represent, direct, or speak for any of these agencies.
How we source
Small operators first, large partners at scale.
ERNA doesn't lock a requesting agency into one size of partner. As a Canadian response moves from immediate impact to a sustained emergency, the network shifts who it draws equipment and crews from — giving the agency more dynamic control and a better cost profile at every stage.
Immediate response
Independent operators / small businessesLarger partner companies
Nearest capacity wins. Local independent operators closest to the affected province or territory activate first, regardless of size.
Lower mobilization cost. Small operators typically carry lower minimum commitments than large fleet contracts — which matters before the true scope of the event is known.
Dynamic control. The requesting agency can scale the request up or down hour by hour without breaking a large standing contract.
The agency's request is matched to the nearest independent operator, whose crew and equipment reach the people affected directly — often within the first response window.
Stabilizing response
Independent operators / small businessesLarger partner companies
Blended sourcing. As the scale of the event becomes clear, larger partner companies are brought in alongside the independent operators already deployed.
Capacity without losing flexibility. Independent operators keep filling local gaps while partner companies cover the growing baseline demand.
Cross-border option. Provinces along the US border can draw on American operators when domestic capacity is tapped.
Dispatch operations rebalance which responders — independent or partner — are actively serving which part of the affected population as the picture develops.
Sustained response
Independent operators / small businessesLarger partner companies
Large partner companies carry the base load. Standing contracts provide the fleet size and crew rotation a multi-month nuclear or biological response needs.
Predictable, negotiated cost. Longer commitments unlock the per-unit pricing that only makes sense once duration is certain.
Independent operators stay in the mix. Smaller local operators keep covering region-specific gaps the larger fleets aren't positioned for.
The agency's standing allocation keeps equipment rotating to the affected population for as long as the emergency runs — without renegotiating the request from scratch.
The sourcing mix shown is illustrative of the model, not a live allocation — actual sourcing depends on the specific request, available capacity, and the requesting agency's own procurement rules.
Want to see this in numbers instead? The Impact Calculator sizes ambulances, shelter space, and crew to a hypothetical scenario.
Open calculatorCoverage
Short and long-term response, Canadian-staged.
Wildfire and flood account for most provincial declarations; long-term capability is staged for the less frequent but higher-impact events.
Short-term
Wildfire, flood, severe storm
Equipment staged regionally, with particular depth in wildfire-prone provinces during fire season.
Long-term
Nuclear & biological
Sustained equipment supply coordinated with provincial health and emergency management authorities over an extended response.
Cross-border
Border-region combination
Provinces along the US border can draw on American partner capacity when it's closer than equipment staged elsewhere in Canada.
Canada dashboards
What the app looks like for this region.
Canadian agencies and partners get a dashboard scoped to provincial/territorial jurisdictions and federal activations.
Customer / agency dashboard
1
Open request
4
Assets en route
1
Cross-border asset
JurisdictionBritish Columbia
TypeWildfire — short-term
Generators requested5
ALS kits allocated12
Partner dashboard
4
Equipment listed
1
Active deployment
$—
Earnings this month
Partner typeIndependent operator
CertificationsPCP, Class 4 license
License scopeCanada only
Generator, 15kW (x2)Deployed
BLS supply kit (x20)Listed
New offerBC interior · Generator x2