When COVID-19 arrived in Canada, the National Emergency Strategic Stockpile was supposed to provide a buffer—millions of masks, gloves, and other supplies maintained for exactly such moments. Instead, responders discovered degraded materials, expired medications, and quantities far below what the emergency required. The gap between stockpile promises and stockpile reality became one of the pandemic's early failures, prompting fundamental questions about how Canada maintains emergency supplies and whether we're prepared for the next crisis.