Important Community Update

March 7, 2017

At approximately 9:00 p.m. Tuesday, March 7th the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver  (JCC) received an email bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax. While there was never a real threat to personal safety, we take all matters concerning security very seriously – in fact, the JCC had just conducted a drill last week. When the email was received JCC followed their established protocols and evacuated the building without incident. It was after regular building hours and so offices and services were closed, however, there was a concert taking place in the theatre at the time.

The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) conducted a thorough search of the building and declared the building safe to be reopened. The JCC will be open for business as usual in the morning. The incident remains under investigation by VPD, and we will continue to work closely with them. We would like to extend our appreciation to the VPD for their immediate response and concern for public safety.

False alarms such as this are a good reminder to us all to stay vigilant, and we are taking the following extra precautions.

• We have asked VPD to step up their patrols of Jewish community institutions.
• We have notified all Jewish community organizations and advised them to ensure they have updated protocols in place.
• Jewish Federation’s Community Security Advisory Committee is staying on top of the situation and will update Jewish community organizations as needed.
   

We remain committed to working together to keep Jewish community institutions safe and welcoming places where you and your family can feel comfortable taking part in community activities.

Sincerely,