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Mayor Rob Ford’s refusal to declare an official emergency in the wake of the weekend’s ice storm is frustrating some councillors, who say the city should be pulling out the stops to respond to the wintry blast that has left tens of thousands without power.

At a Monday afternoon press conference Ford reiterated that he has no intention of declaring an emergency, telling reporters that he considered doing so on Sunday night but that by the following day relief efforts appeared to be on track. Ford said that although many people remain without power, city officials agreed with his decision.

“It’s been clarified to you that a state of emergency is not needed at this time,” Ford said. “Right now things are improving, things are improving quickly.”

Last month council voted to delegate most of the mayor’s powers to the deputy mayor in response to Ford’s ongoing drug and gang scandal. One responsibility that by law they couldn’t revoke was his ability to declare a city emergency.

Some council members are demanding he exercise that authority, claiming it would assist efforts to clean up after the ice storm. As of Monday evening just under 200,000 households were still without electricity, including 53 Toronto Community Housing buildings, and streets across the city remained blocked by fallen tree limbs.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam argues that the city should follow the lead of Toronto Hydro, which declared an emergency soon after the storm hit. She’s concerned for seniors and other vulnerable people, especially those in high-rises whose elevators have stopped working because of the power outage.

“We actually have a tremendous blackout situation where people are now living in their homes without heat, and if you’re not fortunate enough to be taken in by some kind neighbours, friends or family, you’re literally stranded,” says Wong-Tam. “At the very least what we can do is try to make sure that every single resource is deployed in order for us to get people back into their homes warm and safe.”

Councillor Josh Matlow, who says his mid-town ward was hit hard, agrees. He says that declaring an emergency is “about just ensuring that every single resource that can be made available is on the ground helping. Spending several days over Christmas without power is unacceptable…Government should do everything it can to help in the aftermath.”

Toronto’s municipal code defines an emergency as a situation that “constitutes a danger of major proportions that could result in serious harm to persons or substantial damage to property.”

Declaring the emergency would automatically activate the city’s Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), but the centre can also be activated without an official declaration, and is already up and running to deal with the storm. So far nine warming centres have been opened, and Toronto police have opened several police stations as well.

The emergency declaration would also place Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly firmly in control of the situation. As a result of the council vote last month, Kelly, not Ford, would be able to exercise all authority normally delegated to council for up to 30 days after the emergency declaration.

Councillors Wong-Tam and Matlow would not speculate on whether Ford was refusing to call an emergency in order to keep himself in the spotlight and sideline the deputy mayor.

Kelly’s office did not immediately return a request for comment on Monday, but in an interview with CP24 he suggested an emergency declaration would be helpful.

“There’s a considerable feeling amongst a lot of people out there that one should be declared because it brings clarity to the issue,” he said. “But the important thing is to get as much help as you can get as quickly as possible and I hope that that’s the case without declaring an emergency.”

Despite the concerns of some council members, it’s not clear how much declaring an emergency would actually do to boost relief efforts.

Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, chair of the Public Works Committee, isn’t convinced that a declaration would make any material difference.

“I don’t think that calling an emergency would make the lights go on any faster or a furnace turn on any sooner,” he says. “The public service knows what to do, and they’re doing it without politicians interfering.”

According to City Manager Joe Pennachetti, the move would not change how much assistance Toronto gets from the province.

“The province has indicated that all available resources will be provided regardless of the declaration of an emergency,” Pennachetti said in a recent update distributed to councillors. The province is working with the city’s Emergency Operations Centre to provide forestry crews and fuel for backup generators. “At the operational level, the City is working with the Province and a formal declaration of emergency will not change the situation,” the update said.

Deputy city manager John Livey refuted media reports that staff had advised the mayor to call an emergency but he had declined. Livey said that on Sunday staff had discussed the possibility of declaring one if the situation got worse, but city officials agreed one was not necessary at this point.

Livey said that a declaration would only be warranted if the city were in a situation like New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, when it might be necessary to suspend civil liberties to forcibly evacuate residents. One might also be needed if the city was unable to cope with recovery costs, like Lac Mégantic, QC was after that town’s recent railway disaster.

According to a city spokesperson, modern Toronto has never declared an official emergency.

As Toronto Hydro workers scramble to restore power to blacked-out neighbourhoods in time for Christmas, a spokesperson for the agency won’t say if an emergency declaration would aid their efforts.

“It’s up to the city of Toronto to declare an emergency. We have been operating at our own highest level of emergency since the storm has hit,” says Vanessa Nero. “We have every resource internally deployed to the restoration efforts.”

The agency has asked for hydro crews from across Ontario and the neighbouring U.S. to come to Toronto’s aid, and is expecting out-of-town workers to start arriving on Tuesday. It’s hoping to have power restored to all residents by Christmas Day, but some households could be waiting at least until Friday.

bens@nowtoronto.com | @BenSpurr

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