Improving seniors’ safety a ‘mandate’
Minister calls fire-suppression systems in facilities a priority and a challenge for Conservatives
It’s not going to be something you can do overnight, and it’s going to take several years and it’s going to take a lot of money
SENIORS MINISTER JEFF JOHNSON
EDMONTON — Installing fire-suppression sprinklers in seniors residences and long-term-care facilities is a high priority for the new Jim Prentice government, but it won’t happen overnight, says Seniors Minister Jeff Johnson.
Johnson told town and city politicians at the annual Alberta Urban Municipalities Association fall conference the new premier has directed him to address the issue in the mandate letter he received after being sworn into cabinet.
“It is one of the mandates the premier has given me, so it will be one of our top priorities,” Johnson said.
But the seniors minister said in an interview it will be a challenge to address fire safety issues in seniors facilities because it will be cost prohibitive in some aging facilities, while others are in municipalities that lack sufficient water pressure to employ the safety feature.
Some buildings are so old it will make more sense to replace the facility entirely rather than installing sprinkler systems, he added.
“It’s not going to be something you can do overnight, and it’s going to take several years and it’s going to take a lot of money,” Johnson said.
He said officials in his ministry are developing a plan that will outline the size and scope of the problem, and provide a strategy to resolve it.
The Herald reported this summer that 455 of the province’s 657 seniors facilities are not fully equipped with sprinkler systems. It reported at the time the cost of installing sprinklers in all facilities could top $250 million.
But Prentice vowed to address the issue if he was selected premier.
Concern for the safety of Alberta seniors and hospital patients was heightened last January when a fire swept through a Quebec seniors residence, killing 32 people.
Liberal leader Raj Sherman said it is unconscionable that seniors in the wealthiest province in Canada aren’t being adequately protected from fire by the PC government.
“They need to take action immediately on protecting all of our seniors in all of our facilities and institutions today,” he said. “They should have done it yesterday, but they have to get started today.”
NDP critic David Eggen said the province should start with the largest facilities housing the most vulnerable people, and install sprinklers or other fire suppression systems in all the facilities within three years.
“It’s a big-ticket item, but it’s not as though they can avoid that responsibility any further,” he said. “We’ll judge them on their actions.”