College update – NS wildfires
May. 29, 2023 – Statement
The devastating wildfires in the Shelburne and Tantallon areas are impacting many members of our communities and our thoughts are with all those affected. At this time, all campuses are open. If this changes, we will update the closures section of nscc.ca. While operations are continuing, we are aware that many students and employees have been evacuated and affected in other ways and this could impact the ability to work and learn. If this is your situation, please connect with your supervisor or faculty to let them know you're okay.
As this situation continues to unfold, please stay informed. There are resources listed below for direction. We know how upsetting this can be for everyone and want to remind you of where to find information on available wellness supports.
Provincial updates and resources
- Emergency alerts and information - Government of Nova Scotia, Canada
- Halifax comfort centre information
Supports for everyone
- LifeWorks Community Crisis Support Line at 1-844-751-2133. This is open 24/7 and provides individuals with professional emotional support and/or referral to community resources. This line is open to everyone. Employees and students can share this information with their communities, family, and friends.
- Red Cross resources
- Nova Scotia Mental Health Crisis Line (for emergencies)
Student supports
- Wellness resources continue to be available and can be accessed via Connect. These include crisis supports, counselling services, and more.
Urgent aid:
- Applications are now open for our Nova Scotia Wildfire Emergency Bursaries which supports affected NSCC students.
- Students can also access Urgent Aid through their campuses for support of unforeseen expenses via Connect.
Employee supports
- Employees and family assistance (EFAP) support is always available and can be accessed via Connect. This program includes short-term counselling, advisory services and more.
Operational notes
While operations are continuing there are small changes to our work that can assist with efforts:
- College travel - We encourage our community to refrain from College travel that involves heading to any of the affected areas and ask that you check with your faculty/supervisor if uncertain to help ensure that needs such as hotel rooms/roadways are available for those involved with essential travel.
- Cameras off on Teams - We also ask you to try to limit your bandwidth while on Teams calls (for example: keep cameras off/tether from your phone if possible) to help with all of the emergency communications underway.
- Please know we will keep an eye on how this could, if it continued to spread, affect our convocation ceremonies which start next week but at this point there are no changes.
We know these wildfires are affecting our College community in many ways - those evacuated, those supporting others needing shelter, those supporting the fire services battling the wildfires. You are all in our thoughts as everyone works to support those most directly affected.
We will continue to provide updates through email, on Connect and on social media as available/needed but encourage you to stay informed through those official channels noted above.