QUOTED: Rob Ford on the devastating toll of this weekend’s ice storm

By Steve Kupferman | December 23, 2013

By Steve Kupferman | 12/23/2013

“Yes, there are a few people who have been inconvenienced. That’s Mother Nature for you.”

—Rob Ford, at a press conference earlier this morning, showing his usual knack for summing up a crisis. (See also: “It is what it is and I can’t change the past.”) Roughly 200,000 Toronto Hydro customers are still without electricity after this weekend’s storm. Some of them, especially low-income seniors, may not have ways of coping until Wednesday—that’s Christmas Day—when officials say power will be completely restored. Ford has not yet accepted help from the province, and has not called a state of emergency—a move that would give scads of new powers to deputy mayor Norm Kelly.

10 thoughts on “QUOTED: Rob Ford on the devastating toll of this weekend’s ice storm”

Why should hundreds of thousands of Torontonians without power in frigid temperatures be considered an emergency? Rob guarantees that everyone will have their power back within the next 48 hours. What’s the big deal? The Mayor’s word is worth its weight in gold. Just get a hotel room like the mayor. No big deal. Or sleep in your Cadillac Escalade but crack the window open a little.

I’m struggling with the question being asked. Toronto Hydro says nothing would change at their end if a state of emergency was declared. Would declaring one free up a bunch of dollars so that seniors could check into hotels? Would the army come in and set up bonfires for people to warm their hands? What?

Crack the window open, or open the crack?

I’m so tired of this supreme Fool f*** the protocol there’s an emergency here of huge proportions the army needs to be called an to find those people who can care for themselves during this crisis and generators need to be brought in pronto

No I don’t believe this is a state of emergency. Luckily here in Toronto we don’t really know what a state on emergency is. We are lucky. What did we do before the microwave dinner? This is not killing anyone, no lives have been lost. Sure it is uncomfortable for a few days. But you never hear anyone exclaiming a state of emergency for the homeless people who go through this on a daily basis. Now that you know how it feels to be cold and hungry, will you help those in need tomorrow when you get your cozy little homes up and running. Why spend all those dollars for the army. What can they do? Anyone can use a chainsaw. And if YOU have one this would be a perfect time to not only help others, and for the unemployed to make a buck. Not an EMERGENCY. Get a grip people. Look outside it is beautiful. Just be careful and stay indoors for a couple of days, if you have no heat, visit a friend or family, or, get a hotel room. It could have been MUCH worse. This is winter in Canada. I am tired of all the haters out there. People who misuse the system. I feel terrible and cold, but it is not the end of the world. Come on Toronto…YOU CAN DO IT….Stop trying so hard to make us all look bad. It is not our Mayor who is making us look bad,( although he is no help) it is all the people who hate everything all the time. That makes us look bad. Stop complaining and help a neighbor out.

some of the blame goes on the city workers or more slackers… they fail to do their job to prune trees. Try calling the city to get a city tree pruned.. theres a waitlist of 1 year.. when they finally showup they trim a few branches and go.. ask them to prune some more and stare at you like you have sinned… suggesting the tree is too old and should be uprooted would probably get you in trouble… Blaming the mayor is senseless .. trees that are old are useless and need to be uprooted not pruned before they kill someone or damage property and leave us in darkness for more than 24 hours. Or either the city should move the powerlines underground like new cities like milton etc.

i think it’s great that your sympathy is with the homeless people who experience devastating cold every winter. but i think your perspective here on whether or not this is an emergency is a bit misaligned with your empathy for the homeless. “homelessness,” by all current definitions, is not limited to people who literally sleep on the street. it includes all people for whom housing is insecure, unsafe, and/or unaffordable. (http://www.homelesshub.ca/ResourceFiles/CHRNhomelessdefinition-1pager.pdf) there are many, many people who are vulnerably housed and otherwise vulnerable in the city of toronto, and they will be the ones who suffer most from the effect of the ice storm. these are people who do not have the money for a hotel, do not have family or friends who are able to accommodate them, and survive day-to-day based on access to services that have been disrupted by the storm (TTC, social/community/health services). these are people who live precariously on a daily basis, and events like this ice storm can easily push them over the edge from tentative security to total vulnerability. as for the homeless who live on the streets – shelter services and other essential community and health services have been negatively affected by the storm – they will be the worse for this as well. for example, the vast majority of shelters in the city require that people leave the shelter in the morning, and are not permitted to return again until the evening – this forces people out into the cold, icy streets. these shelters require increased support (financial and otherwise) if they are to be able to accommodate people during the days. interesting fact: in 1998 the toronto disaster relief committee released a “State of Emergency Declaration” and successfully lobbied for homelessness to be declared a national disaster. Their campaign continues to this day, but, sadly, our governments have moved slowly (and sometimes backwards) on progress. As a result, storms like this continue to have disastrous implications for our most vulnerable citizens. in sum, it is not possible (except for those of us who are lucky) to just “stay indoors for a couple of days.” when i am advocating for a disaster to be declared, it is because of my concern for the city’s most vulnerable.

there are also elderly people with no heat and no family, limited mobility, & phones not working – I think that’s a serious situation and if there are no deaths we will be very lucky.

A lot has to go with people who are not prepared. They are the ones without even a manual can opener. Or even without a flashlight and working batteries.

Wow really?, Wonder how you have dealt with living up north like I have with severe winter storms, snow knee deep not able to leave our homes,and power outages for days considered the norm. All I can recommend if this is an emergency for you of huge proportion best start packing and head South far South!

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