New Data Finds Canadians Want Fast, Local Information in an Emergency

New survey data, from Nextdoor and leading polling provider Angus Reid, reveals just how much Canadians value neighbourhood-level updates in emergencies, and how often they receive them.

When a wildfire sparks, a power outage hits, or a person goes missing, Canadians don’t want to wait, or wonder where to turn. They want local, timely, and trusted information, and they want it right away.

As part of the new Nextdoor, we’re introducing real-time safety Alerts, powered by Edmonton-based crisis detection platform samdesk. These alerts deliver urgent, neighbourhood-specific updates, like wildfires, street closures, and missing persons, directly into your Nextdoor feed.

To better understand how Canadians currently receive local updates and what they value most in a crisis, Nextdoor Canada partnered with Angus Reid Forum to survey more than 1,500 adults nationwide. The findings confirm what we’ve long heard from neighbours: Canadians want timely, trusted, hyperlocal information, and they’re not always getting it.

Key Takeaways:

• 86% of Canadians say it’s important to receive urgent, timely updates about their local area
• Yet only 23% say they’re very confident they know where to find that information in a crisis
• Natural disasters, infrastructure issues, and crime/safety top the list of local concerns
• Fewer than 1 in 3 Canadians get updates on these issues on a weekly basis

Neighbourhoods want better access to verified, hyperlocal information, and Nextdoor is delivering it.

Canadians Want Timely Neighbourhood Information

Across every demographic and region, Canadians agree on one thing: timely neighbourhood information matters.

• 86% of Canadians say it’s important to receive urgent, timely updates about events in their neighbourhood
• Among those older than 65, that jumps to 92%, the highest of any age group
• In every region, about 1 in 3 people say it’s very important

Regional Highlights: 

• Saskatchewan: Highest confidence nationally at 93%
• Manitoba: 84%
• Atlantic Canada: 85%
• Alberta: 75%
• British Columbia: 72%
• Ontario: 72%
• Quebec: 75%

However, there's a disconnect between this need and people’s confidence in finding reliable updates when it counts.

Confidence Gaps in a Crisis

Only 23% of Canadians say they’re very confident in knowing where to find urgent, timely updates in the event of a crisis like a power outage or wildfire. While 75% are confident to some degree, the lack of certainty, especially in the most urgent moments, is telling.

Generational Highlights:

• Millennials report the highest confidence (79%)
• Gen Z lags behind at 68%

Regional Highlights: 

• Saskatchewan stands out with the highest confidence in the country (93%)
• Manitoba (84%) and Atlantic Canada (85%) follow
• Confidence drops to 72% in both Ontario and BC
  
  

The Most Important Information? Emergencies That Hit Close to Home

When asked which types of local updates matter most, Canadians overwhelmingly prioritized emergency-related information:

• Infrastructure alerts (e.g. water main breaks, power outages): 93%
• Natural disasters (e.g. wildfires, floods, storms): 91%
• Crime and safety: 90%
• Missing persons (e.g. Amber Alerts): 86%
• Local developments (e.g. construction, park/public spaces upgrades): 78%
• Public gatherings/events (e.g. protests): 65%
• Lost pets: 56%

Regional Highlights:

• British Columbia: Natural disasters and infrastructure alerts tied as the top priority (92%)
• Alberta: Infrastructure alerts ranked highest (94%), followed closely by natural disasters (93%)
• Saskatchewan/Manitoba: Crime and safety topped the list (94%), with infrastructure alerts just behind (93%)
• Ontario: Infrastructure alerts led at 94%, with crime and natural disasters tied for second (90%)
• Quebec: Infrastructure alerts ranked highest (93%), with natural disasters close behind (91%)
• Atlantic Canada: Missing persons stood out as the top concern (96%), the highest across the country, followed by natural disasters (95%)

Most Canadians Don’t Get These Updates Often Enough

Even though Canadians say they care about urgent local info, many aren’t seeing it on a regular basis. When asked how often people are receiving updates about these types of events in their neighbourhood, we heard:

Weekly Update Frequency:

• Crime and safety: 32%
• Lost pets: 30%
• Natural disasters (e.g. wildfires, floods, storms): 27%
• Public gatherings/events (e.g. protests): 24%
• Infrastructure alerts (e.g. water main breaks, power outages): 23%
• Local developments (e.g. construction, park/public spaces upgrades): 23%
• Missing persons (e.g. Amber Alerts): 18%
  
  

Regional Highlights:

• In Ontario, only 23% receive weekly updates on natural disasters, and 20% on infrastructure alerts
• In Quebec, just 24% receive weekly crime updates
• Even in high-confidence regions like Saskatchewan, fewer than half receive regular alerts across most categories

This means that two-thirds or more of Canadians don’t receive even weekly updates on issues they overwhelmingly say are important.

Download Nextdoor today to connect with your neighbourhood and test out all of our new features.

Survey Methodology

These findings are from a survey conducted by Nextdoor Canada and the Angus Reid Forum from June 27 to July 2, 2025, among a nationally representative sample of 1,507 online Canadian adults. The survey was conducted in English and French. A probability sample of this size carries a margin of error of ±2.53 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.