Kicking Off National Preparedness Month –2013

 

 

# 7622

 

Today, and for the next 30 days, you are going to be hearing a lot about individual, family, business, and community preparedness from FEMA & READY.GOV, the American Red Cross, a barrage of new Public Service Announcements, social media, and blogs like this one.

 

This combined effort is all part of the National Preparedness Month, a campaign that began in 2004, and has grown with each passing year.

 

This year is also the 10th anniversary of the creation of READY.GOV, a federal agency that promotes the idea that all of America should be prepared for a wide range of emergencies.

 

 

While the past 10 years has seen improvements, far too many American families and businesses remain poorly equipped to deal with a major disaster. And that knowledge keeps emergency planners up at night.

 

A recent Red Cross poll (Coastal Hurricane Preparedness May 2013), found only about half of those polled had an evacuation plan, 1/3rd have no home disaster supplies, and only about half reported having a family communications plan.

 

As these results are self-reported, and the quantity and quality of their preparations are likely to vary considerably, this poll may overstate the true level of preparedness in coastal communities.

 

Which is why every September I join in with FEMA and Ready.gov to promote National Preparedness Month (NPM13), by running preparedness essays in this blog.

 

For those who equate prepping with sensationalized cable TV and Internet `Doomsday-type’ preppers, rest assured we aren’t talking about digging a bunker, laying in a 10-year supply of freeze dried foods, or stockpiling guns and ammo.

 

The goal of NPM2013 is to foster a culture of national preparedness, and to encourage everyone to plan and be prepared to deal with an event where they can go at least 72 hours without electricity, running water, local services, or access to a supermarket.

 

These are, of course, minimum goals.

 

Disruptions that follow hurricanes, tornado outbreaks, floods, and other natural disasters can potentially last for days or even weeks, and so – if you are able to do so - being prepared for 10 days to 2 weeks makes a good deal of sense (see When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough).

 

Last year, in Making The Most Of The Day Before Tomorrow, I highlighted a very effective graphic from  Ready.gov that shows the `day before disaster’ for all 50 states.

 

The date when it was still not too late to prepare.

 

Click through to the interactive map, to see each state’s date with destiny.

 

If you click on California, for example, you’ll get:

You get the idea. 

 

The takeaway point is, you never know whether today is the day before your disaster . . .

 

We’ll be covering a lot of preparedness topics over the next month, but to get you started, I would invite you to visit:

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

If you are on Twitter, I would recommend you follow @FEMA, @CraigatFEMA, @NHC_Atlantic, @NHC_Pacific and @ReadyGov.

Resolve To Be Ready In 2011 Toolkit

 

 

 

 

# 5163

 

 

Since 1953, there have been a total of 1949 federally declared disasters, averaging out to 34 per year. 

 

That number is a bit deceptive, however, since over the past decade we’ve routinely seen 50, 60, and even 70 disasters each year.

 

 

 

2010 has set a new record, with 79 disaster declarations as of 11/24.   And the year isn’t over.

 

Most of these disasters are, as you might expect, weather related;  Hurricanes, blizzards, floods, and tornadoes.

 

But weather isn’t the only threat.  Earthquakes, tsunamis, industrial accidents, and terrorism all have the potential to generate a genuine disaster.

 

And it doesn’t take a community-wide crisis to ruin your entire day.

 

Every year hundreds of thousands of Americans are involved in injury producing household accidents, car wrecks, house fires, severe storms, and other forms of unexpected mayhem.

 

Being prepared – with a family emergency plan, a proper first aid kit, and emergency supplies – can make the difference between suffering (and surviving) an inconvenience and a tragedy.

 

FEMA, Ready.gov, and the Department of Homeland Security, along with the Ad Council, have produced a 24 page toolkit to help promote better individual and community preparedness in 2011.

 

You can find the details on the Ready.gov website at:

http://www.ready.gov/resolve2011

 

This toolkit is well worth downloading (and sharing). A few excerpts and links.

 

RESOLVE TO BE READY IN 2011

 

As the New Year approaches, the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Ready Campaign is once again reminding people to Resolve to be Ready in 2011. Americans who make New Year’s resolutions are 11 times more likely to report continued success in achieving a goal than individuals who have not made a resolution, according to the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

 

The Ready Campaign would like to make an emergency preparedness resolution easy to keep by providing the tools and resources needed to take the three important steps: get a kit, make a plan and be informed about the different types of emergencies that can happen in your area and their appropriate responses. We hope you will join the Ready Campaign this Holiday Season in promoting Resolve to be Ready.

 

On this page you will find a toolkit to help your organization develop internal and external messages to encourage your members, employees, constituents, customers and community to make a New Year's resolution to prepare for emergencies. You will also find Web banners for your organization's Web site, a sample E-mail and a Newsletter you can share with your key constituents.

 

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Ready at Ready@dhs.gov.

Now's the Time. Resolve to be Ready in 2011.

Resolve to be Ready Toolkit

Resolve To Be Ready Toolkit
  PDF, 538 Kb

Resolve to be Ready Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation

Resolve To Be Ready Powerpoint Presentation
  MS PPT, 5.5 Mb

All Resolve to be Ready Collateral

Resolve To Be Ready ZIP Archive
  ZIP, 6.5 Mb

#NatlPrep : Tomorrow (Sept. 30th) Is National PrepareAthon! Day

 

Note: This is day 29 of National Preparedness Month . Follow this year’s campaign on Twitter by searching for the #NatlPrep hash tag.

This month, as part of NPM15, I’ll be rerunning some edited and updated older preparedness essays, along with some new ones.

 

#10,575

 

All month long FEMA, READY.Gov, state and local Emergency agencies, and grassroots coalition members have been promoting National Preparedness Month through community events, drills, and exercises and yes . . .blogs like mine  . . to encourage Americans to become better prepared to deal with any emergency or disaster.

To see this month’s preparedness blogs (newest to oldest) click this link.

 

Tomorrow is the culmination of these combined efforts, where it is hoped that you and your family will take action, review their local threats, and increase their level of preparedness to deal with them.  Although preparedness takes a lot of forms, FEMA has four first steps to get you started, and the first three won’t cost you anything but a little time.

.

 

FEMA Encourages Families and Communities to Participate in National PrepareAthon! Day

Release date: September 28, 2015

(EXCERPT)

National PrepareAthon! Day is part of America’s PrepareAthon!, a nationwide grassroots campaign for action to increase community preparedness and resilience through hazard-specific group discussions, drills, and exercises. The campaign offers easy-to-implement preparedness guides, checklists, and resources to help individuals, organizations, and communities prepare for the types of disasters that are relevant to their area. People can take these simple steps to increase their preparedness:

1. Create a family emergency communication plan. Visit ready.gov/prepare and download Be Smart. Take Part: Create Your Family Emergency Communication Plan. Collect the information you need, decide on the places you will meet in case of an emergency, share the information with your family, and practice your plan. 
2. Sign up for local text alerts and warnings and download weather apps. Stay aware of worsening weather conditions. Visit ready.gov/prepare and download Be Smart: Know Your Alerts and Warnings to learn how sign up for local alerts and weather apps that are relevant for hazards that affect your area.
3. Gather important documents and keep them in a safe place. Have all of your personal, medical, and legal papers in one place, so you can evacuate without worrying about gathering your family’s critical documents at the last minute. Visit ready.gov/prepare and download Be Smart: Protect Your Critical Documents and Valuables for a helpful checklist.
4. Create an emergency supply kit. Be prepared for bad weather by creating an emergency supply kit for each member of your family. Visit ready.gov/build-a-kit for more ideas of what to include in your kit.

Visit the America’s PrepareAthon! website, ready.gov/prepare for more information, to sign up, and to register your participation.

 

As you can see, it doesn't  take a huge investment in either time or money for you and your family to become better prepared.  It just takes the resolve to do so.  But I can assure you, just having the peace of mind knowing you are prepared for an emergency is well worth the effort.

 

After all, preparing is easy . . . it’s worrying that is hard.

Resolve To Be Ready: 2013

 

 

# 6806

 

Despite some of the negative images that `doomsday survivalist’ type TV shows have fostered, Ready.gov, FEMA, the HHS, and the CDC all promote the idea that everyone should be prepared to deal with a variety of emergencies and disasters.

 

They know that every year tens of thousands of people across the nation are forced to deal with house fires, floods, severe storms, and medical emergencies. And the potential exists for even larger disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes, and even a pandemic. 

 

Being better prepared - as an individual, family, and community - can save lives and reduce misery.

 

With the start of a new year, many of us will be making New Year’s resolutions – which makes this the perfect time to join FEMA & Ready.gov’s  Resolve to Be Ready in 2013 campaign.

 

 

This year, with the rapid proliferation of `smart phones’ & tablets, the focus is on incorporating these technologies into preparedness.

 

Resolve to be Ready

Led by FEMA's Ready campaign in partnership with Citizen Corps and the Ad Council, this year's emphasis includes integrating technology into individuals, families and businesses preparedness plans. A 2012 Nielson report revealed that nearly 55 percent of mobile phone owners in the United States own smartphones. As a simple resolution, Ready is asking all smartphone owners to turn the technology in their purses and pockets into a life-saving tool during and after an emergency or disaster.

 

Below are additional ways the Ready campaign recommends implementing technology into your emergency plans:

• Learn how to send updates via text and internet from your mobile phone to your contacts and social channels in case voice communications are not available;
• Store your important documents such as personal and financial records in the cloud, in a secure and remote area, or on a flash or jump drive that you can keep readily available so they can be accessed from anywhere; and
• Create an Emergency Information Document by using Ready's Family Emergency Plan template in Google Docs (use Google Chrome to view) or by downloading the Ready Family Emergency Plan to record your emergency plans.
• Download the Resolve 2B Ready 2013 Toolkit for tips and actions you can take.

A good starting place is FEMA’s App – available for Android, Blackberry, & Apple - which they describe as:

Government disaster response at the touch of a button. Learn how to respond to disasters, keep your family safe, apply for assistance, and help others in case of floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, terrorism, or other disasters. We continue to add new relevant information, in both English and Spanish, working to ensure that Americans have easy access to the tools they need to prepare for and, when needed, recover from a disaster in their community. Future enhancements include the ability to check on the status of an application and update an existing application.

 

In October I highlighted some of the smart phone apps available from the American Red Cross (see Red Cross Apps). They include:

Wildfire App

First Aid App

Hurricane App

Shelter Finder App

Earthquake App

 

To become better prepared as an individual, family, business owner, or community requires more than just downloading an app, so I would invite you visit the following preparedness sites to learn the basics.

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

And finally, some of my own preparedness articles may be of interest:

 

When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

In An Emergency, Who Has Your Back?

An Appropriate Level Of Preparedness

The Gift of Preparedness 2012

Do1Thing: A 12 Step Preparedness Program

Major Disasters In the United States - Credit FEMA

 

 

# 6827

 

While government agencies like FEMA and Ready.gov  continually urge people to become better prepared to deal with emergencies and disasters, many people end up doing little (or nothing) because the task seems so daunting.

 

To go from unprepared to prepared doesn’t happen overnight.  It requires thought, effort, some modest expenditures and time.

 

Each September FEMA & Ready.gov promote National Preparedness Month – and I devote a good deal of this blog to that effort – but the best time to get started in preparedness is now.

 

And to help you along in this task is the web-based Do1Thing project, which was recently featured in the CDC’s Public Health Matters Blog.   This is a 12-step program that asks you to just do 1 thing each month to become better prepared.

 

Register on the site (which is free) and you’ll receive monthly email reminders and encouragement, to help you meet the goal of becoming better prepared over the next year.

 

A few excerpts from the CDC blog, then I’ll return with more.

 

Do 1 Thing in 2013

Categories: General, Natural Disasters, Preparedness, Response

 

January 1st, 2013 8:00 am ET  -  Blog Administrator

New Year’s resolutions have been on our mind at CDC’s Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response.  Through the halls you will hear talk of losing weight, reading more, spending less money… the list goes on and on.  But let’s be honest, resolutions can be hard to keep.  This year, make a resolution you can keep.  Commit to improving your preparedness skills and resources for emergency situations.

 

The idea of preparing for an emergency may seem like a daunting task.  Some shrug and assume that emergency responders will be there to save the day.  The truth is, when disaster strikes, emergency responders are slammed with calls for help.  It may be left up to you.  Be ready and prepared to help yourself, your family, and your neighbors.

 

Start small.  Focus on one topic area each month for the year.  The Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response has recognized the Do 1 Thing project as a community effort that reflects and embodies the Whole Community approach to emergency management.  Do 1 Thing, a web-based preparedness program, encourages participants to become better prepared by tackling one topic each month.

(Continue . . . )

 

 

Do1Thing also has a Youtube channel where you’ll find a dozen audio files (each approx 4 minutes) giving the basics for each month of preparedness, along with a dozen 30 second PSA videos. 

 

You can visit it HERE.

 

The first step for January is to MAKE A PLAN.  In February you’ll store enough water for family and pets to last 72 hours, and in March you’ll make decisions about sheltering in place or (if necessary) evacuating to another location. 

 

By following these 12 monthly steps, by the end of the year, you and your family should be well prepared to deal with most emergencies and disasters.

 

While major disasters don’t happen every day, the United States experiences one – on average – every five to seven days.  In 2011 there were a record 99 major disaster declarations.

 

It doesn’t take a `doomsday’ type event to ruin your whole day.  Tornadoes, floods, winter storms, power outages, earthquakes, wildfires, and hurricanes are all too common occurrences.  

When things go bad in a hurry, the advantage goes to those who are best prepared.

 

Which is why FEMA, Ready.gov, the HHS, CDC, and dozens of other agencies and organizations all encourage citizen preparedness.

 

For more on general preparedness, I would invite you to visit.

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

 

And finally, some of my own preparedness articles may be of interest:

 

When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

In An Emergency, Who Has Your Back?

An Appropriate Level Of Preparedness

The Gift of Preparedness 2012

NPM13: Create A Family Communications Plan

Note: This is day 25 of National Preparedness Month.  Follow this year’s campaign on Twitter by searching for the #NPM or #NPM13 hash tag.

This month, as part of NPM13, I’ll be rerunning some updated  preparedness essays (like this one) , along with some new ones.

 

# 7814

 

 

Those of us who were living in Florida during the `bad old days’ of the cold war remember well the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.

 

Although it is hard to imagine it today, much of Florida was on a war footing with fears of a nuclear attack that might come at any time, thousands of military streaming into the state, and schools running daily `duck & cover’ and emergency evacuation exercises.

 

Kids were sent home with civil defense pamphlets on the basics of radiation poisoning and how to build an in-home fallout shelter.

 

As an 8-year-old with a scientific bent, these were exciting times.

 

What I didn’t full appreciate at the time was my parents were faced with an agonizing dilemma. My twin-brother and I attended a nearby elementary school, while my 17-year old sister attended high school some distance away.

 

If the alert went up, they realized they might only have time to get to one school to pick up their kids.

 

Logic dictated that the pick up my brother and I, based on our ages, and the fact that there were two of us. My sister was given instructions to go to the home of one of her high school friends, and our folks would  either contact her or pick her up there.

 

More than 50 years ago, in the face of a potential crisis, my family cobbled together their own emergency communications plan including an alternate rendezvous point.

 

While a nuclear attack is (thankfully) far less likely today, the same principles hold true when it comes to having a communications plan, and a meet-up point.

 

And since a tornado, earthquake, house fire, or some other disaster can strike without warning . . .  these are the sorts of plans every family needs to make now. Before they are needed.

 

This from Ready.gov.

 

 MAKE A PLAN

Your family may not be together when a disaster strikes so it is important to plan in advance: how you will get to a safe place; how you will contact one another; how you will get back together; and what you will do in different situations. Read more about Family Communication during an emergency.

Ready.gov has made it simple for you to make a family emergency plan. Download the Family Communication Plan for Parents and Kids (PDF - 1.2 Mb) and fill out the sections before printing it or emailing it to your family and friends.

You should also inquire about emergency plans at places where your family spends time: work, daycare and school, faith organizations, sports events and commuting. If no plans exist, consider volunteering to help create one. Talk to community leaders, your colleagues, neighbors and members of faith or civic organizations about how you can work together in the event of an emergency. You will be better prepared to safely reunite your family and loved ones during an emergency if you think ahead and communicate with others in advance. Read more about school and workplace plans.

 

 

 

READY.GOV has made things  easier today, as they’ve developed  several Family Emergency Communication Kits geared for both adults and kids, which can be downloaded from the net. With just a few minutes effort, you can have your own emergency communications plan and emergency meeting place set up.

 

While the above version is geared to kids, the version below is more suitable for teenagers and adults.

 

Appendix C of the Are You Ready? Guide (contains blank contact cards and a family communications plan form)

 

Filling out these cards may seem a small step, but that's what most preparedness involves.

 

Taking small, organized steps that, when put together, create a fabric of individual and community preparedness.  If you do just one small step each day, in almost no time you’ll find yourself and your family far better prepared to face any emergency.

 

For more on how to prepare, visit these websites:

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

And you can use this link to read earlier NPM preparedness posts on this blog.

East Coast Tsunami Threats

# 6448

 

East Coast tsunamis, while admittedly rare – do occur - and history has shown that they can be extremely destructive.  Last March in Tsunami Awareness Week: March 20th – 26th I wrote about a list of known or suspected Atlantic and East Coast Tsunamis which included:

 

• November 1, 1755 - Lisbon, Portugal
• October 11, 1918 - Puerto Rico
• November 18, 1929 - Newfoundland
• August 4, 1946 - Dominican Republic
• August 18, 1946 - Dominican Republic
• November 14, 1840 - Great Swell on the Delaware River
• November 17, 1872 - Maine
• January 9, 1926 - Maine
• May 19, 1964 - Northeast USA

  POSSIBLE TSUNAMI

• June 9, 1913 - Longport, NJ
• August 6, 1923 - Rockaway Park, Queens, NY. An article on triplicate waves."
• August 8, 1924 - Coney Island, NY. Contains a discussion, “An Observed Tsunami Building In Coastal Waters?"
• August 19, 1931 - Atlantic City, NJ
• September 21, 1938 - Hurricane, NJ coast.
• July 3-4, 1992 - Daytona Beach, FL

 

 

While little remembered today, in November of 1929 a destructive North Atlantic tsunami came ashore after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck offshore from Newfoundland.  Three hours later a 3 to 4 meter tsunami washed across many coastal fishing villages on the Burin Peninsula, killing 28 people and leaving as many as 10,000 homeless.

 

In the spring of 2011 we took  A Look At Europe’s Seismic Risks, which gave details on the mother-of-all Altantic basin tsunamis, which was generated by the Lisbon Earthquake  of 1755 (Est. 8.5 magnitude).

 

Tremendous tsunamis (20+ meters) were reported in Northern Africa, Spain and Portugal, and smaller waves washed ashore in the Caribbean and the Atlantic Coast of the New World many hours later. 

 

Tsunami Travel Times from the 1755 Quake – Credit Wikipedia

 

Although accurate numbers are impossible to come by, in Lisbon alone the death toll is estimated at between 10,000 and 100,000.  Most historians place the number at the high end of that range.

 

While far less common that their Pacific counterparts, east coast tsunamis - by reason of geography, population density, and a general lack of public awareness - have the potential to be extremely dangerous.

 

Courtesy of a tweet from FEMA Director Craig Fugate yesterday, I found this fascinating slideshow training presentation on the East Coast Tsunami Threat that expands considerably on my earlier blog post.

 

One of the most remarkable slides in this 29 minute presentation shows that while they happen less often than Pacific tsunamis, historically the east coast death toll is almost as great as those from the west coast.

 

 

Depending upon the type of precipitating event (seismic activty, landslide, asteroid/meteor impact, etc) and the location, tsunami travel and warning times around the Atlantic will vary from minutes to many hours.

 

 

 

You can access current Tsunami warnings and arrival times at the  Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

 

As far as what to do before a tsunami threatens, READY.GOV has a Tsunami Awareness Page with helpful hints.

 

While it may seem unlikely that a tsunami will affect you or your region - this is just one of many potential hazards that may threaten you and your community - and they all require similar preparedness steps.

 

Knowing your local threats, whether they be tsunamis, forest fires, floods, earthquakes or hurricanes  . . . and then becoming prepared to deal with them, will provide you and your family the best safety insurance available.

 

To become better prepared, visit the Ready.gov site today.

Credit Ready.gov

 

To learn how to prepare as an individual, family, business owner, or community I would invite you to visit the following sites and use THIS LINK to access some of my preparedness blogs.

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

Tsunami Preparedness Week - 2015

 

# 9854

 

Since they don’t happen very often, the threats from great earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis are often under appreciated, particularly in North America and Europe. 

 

Yet history is replete with accounts of devastating seismic events in such seemingly unlikely places as Basil, Switzerland and Lisbon, Portugal (see A Look At Europe’s Seismic Risks), Charleston, S.C. and Vancouver, B.C. (see Just A Matter Of Time).

 

While we think of these disasters as primarily localized events, impacting a few thousand square miles, our oceans can transfer the released energy from an earthquake, meteor strike, volcanic eruption, or undersea landslide across distances of thousands of miles in the form of a tsunami (or more likely, a series of tsunami waves).

The great Lisbon earthquake of 1755 sent tsunami waves crashing into Spain, Portugal, England, North Africa, and was felt as far away as the Caribbean. Wave heights were reportedly as high as 20 meters in North Africa, while a 3-meter tsunami struck at Cornwall on the Southern English coast and in Galway, Ireland waves damaged the `Spanish Arch’ section of the city wall.

Tsunami Travel Times from the 1755 Quake

 

A few weeks ago, in The Caribbean’s Hidden Tsunami Potential (Revisited), we looked at that region’s history – and potential – for generating tsunamis that could affect the Gulf Coast and Atlantic coastlines of the United States, along with Mexico, Central America, and South America.

 

After the recent Ring Of Fire earthquakes in Chile, New Zealand, and Japan – and the devastating Indonesian earthquake and Tsunami of 2004 – earthquake researchers are speaking with renewed urgency about the potential for seismic destruction and the need to prepare.

An Active Ring of Fire

Original Map – USGS

 

Courtesy of a tweet from FEMA Director Craig Fugate a few years ago, I found this fascinating slideshow training presentation on the East Coast Tsunami Threat. One of the most remarkable slides in this 29 minute presentation shows that while they happen less often than Pacific tsunamis, historically the east coast death toll is almost as great as those from the west coast.

 

Depending upon the type of precipitating event (seismic activity, landslide, asteroid/meteor impact, etc) and the location, tsunami travel and warning times around the Atlantic will vary from minutes to many hours.

You can access current Tsunami warnings and arrival times at the  Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

 

 

 

As far as what to do before a tsunami threatens, READY.GOV has a Tsunami Awareness Page with helpful hints, as does the National Weather Service

 

 

While it may seem unlikely that a tsunami will affect you or your region - this is just one of many potential hazards that may threaten you and your community - and they all require similar preparedness steps.

Knowing your local threats, whether they be tsunamis, forest fires, floods, earthquakes or hurricanes  . . . and then becoming prepared to deal with them, will provide you and your family the best safety insurance available.

 

To become better prepared, visit the Ready.gov site today.

Credit Ready.gov

To learn how to prepare as an individual, family, business owner, or community I would invite you to visit the following sites.

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

And a sampling of some of my general preparedness blogs includes:

 

When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

In An Emergency, Who Has Your Back?

An Appropriate Level Of Preparedness

The Gift Of Preparedness – 2014 Edition

NPM11: Are You Earthquake Prepared?

Note: This is day 15 of National Preparedness Month.  Follow this year’s campaign on Twitter by searching for the #NPM11 hash tag.

This month, as part of NPM11, I’ll be rerunning some edited and updated older preparedness essays, along with some new ones.

 

# 5841

 

While many natural disasters – like hurricanes, wild fires, and tornados – have a `season’, earthquakes can come at any time and without warning.  As last month’s quake in Virginia demonstrated, even areas that rarely see seismic activity can be at risk.

 

While large earthquakes in the eastern half of the country are relatively rare, they do happen. As you can see by the map below, most of the United States is seismically active – with Alaska, Hawaii, the west coast, and the Midwest seeing the most – and strongest, quakes.

 

USGS map

 

We live on a planet where earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis occur with some regularity. Major earthquakes (7.0 Mag or greater) occur somewhere in the world roughly 17 times each year.

 

1. Based on observations since 1900.

2. Based on observations since 1990.

NOTE: The NEIC estimates that several million earthquakes occur in the world each year. Many go undetected because they hit remote areas or have very small magnitudes.

Source: National Earthquake Information Center, USGS

Seismically active areas of the world

 

Over the past two years earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, New Zealand, and Japan have killed tens of thousands of people, along with disrupting the lives of millions of others. 

 

An Active Ring of Fire

Original Map – USGS

 

And the effects of an earthquake can go far beyond the loss of life and property damage.  Ripple effects caused by economic losses can affect regions far removed from the epicenter.

 

Last June, in The Ripple Effect, we saw that 2/3rds of all businesses in New Zealand were economically impacted by the Christchurch earthquakes.

 

Before that, in Estimating The Economic Impact Of A San Andreas Quake, we saw a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report  that estimated the crippling impact a highly feasible (and long overdue) 7.8 magnitude Southern California earthquake would have on jobs and local businesses.

Download PDF file

 

The point being that when earthquakes happen, you don’t have to be physically injured to be seriously impacted. 

 

Hence the need for earthquake preparedness, even if you don’t live directly over a major fault line.

 

 

Working to improve earthquake awareness, preparation, and safety is Shakeout.org, which promotes yearly earthquake drills and education around the country.

 

 

Upcoming drills include:

Future ShakeOuts (new and repeating):

The Great British Columbia ShakeOut, October 20, 2011 

The Great California ShakeOut, October 20, 2011

The Great Nevada ShakeOut, October 20, 2011

The Great Guam ShakeOut, October 20, 2011

The Great Utah ShakeOut, April 17, 2012

The Great Central U.S. Shakeout On February 7, 2012

 

For more on how you can prepare for `the big one’ (even if you live someplace other than Los Angeles), I would recommend you download, read, and implement the advice provided by the The L. A. County Emergency Survival Guide.

 

 

 

When it comes to extremely large quakes in North America, one of the areas considered most at risk is the Pacific Northwest (see Just A Matter Of Time).

 

Last January I profiled a Washington state based preparedness educator Carol Dunn, who maintains an excellent website on the hazards faced by those living in the Pacific Northwest called 2Resilience.

 

 

You’ll find numerous resources geared for professional first responders, citizen volunteers, and families, individuals, and businesses looking to improve their level of knowledge and preparedness.

 

Last December in Resolve To Be Ready In 2011 Toolkit, I highlighted a 24-page toolkit produced by FEMA, Ready.gov, and the Department of Homeland Security, along with the Ad Council to help promote better individual and community preparedness in 2011.

 

 

You can find the details on the Ready.gov website at:

 

http://www.ready.gov/resolve2011

This toolkit is well worth downloading (and sharing).

 

And to become better prepared as an individual, family, business owner, or community to deal with all types of disasters, I would invite you to visit the following preparedness sites.

 

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

 

Because no matter where you live, its just a matter of time before the next disaster strikes.

Resolve To Be Ready In 2016

Basic kit : NWS radio, First Aid Kit, Lanterns, Water & Food & cash


#10,843


While the residents of Dallas and the Midwest continue to dig out from last week's tornado outbreak, and as the flood waters continue to rise in and along the Mississippi and its tributaries, most of us will end 2015 thankful that disasters like these did not affect our communities, and families.

None of which is to say that everyone got lucky. 

FEMA has declared 43 Major Disasters across the country so far in 2015 (see LIST), along with a couple of Emergency Declarations, and more than 30 Fire Management Assistance Declarations. And there were hundreds more, smaller, localized incidents that caused serious impact for some people, but did not rise to the level of a Federal Declaration.

But Americans avoided truly destructive earthquakes, major land falling hurricanes, disruptive solar storms, and other `big ticket' disasters. 

Other places around the world weren't as fortunate, of course.  Nepal was devastated by a series of huge earthquakes, India suffered both massive floods and heat waves, drought savaged parts of Africa, while the Pacific reeled under the onslaught of 28 typhoons. 


There are certainly no guarantees our luck will hold in the new year. Disasters, large and small, are inevitable, even if where and when they will occur is unknowable. Whether they will directly affect you and your family, is largely a matter of luck.

How you and your loved ones fare during these disasters, however, should never be left solely up to luck.

Ready.gov, FEMA, along with many other agencies continually promote better preparedness for disasters because they know that local, state, and Federal Emergency Services - at least in the opening days of a major event - won't be able to provide assistance to everyone.


Which is why they promote National Preparedness Month each September, and coalition members  like AFD promote preparedness year round. You can search for earlier AFD posts on preparedness using this search link.


Some threats are seasonal, and right now FEMA and READY.GOV are promoting El Nino awareness,  along with winter weather hazards.   In the spring, torando season will take center stage, followed by hurricane season.

But is is always earthquake season, and space weather, cyber attacks on the grid, and pandemics can happen anytime of the year. 

Over the past couple of years we've looked at some of the government's biggest disaster concerns.  Some are, admittedly, low probability events - but should they occur - they'd have a very high impact.

USGS: Preparing The Nation For Severe Space Weather

OSU: Pragmatic Action - Not Fatalism - In Order To Survive The `Big One’

USGS/OGS Joint Statement On Increased Earthquake Threat To Oklahoma

#NatlPrep : Pandemic Planning Considerations

GridEx 2013 Preparedness Drill

None of this is to suggest you should be preparing specifically for any one of these scenarios (although depending where you live, you certainly need to consider some disasters more likely than others). Instead, most experts promote an `all hazards' preparedness plan.

The one common denominator in most disasters, however, is that local utilities may be disrupted - perhaps for days or even weeks.

If a disaster struck your region today, and the power went out, stores closed their doors, and water stopped flowing from your kitchen tap for the next 7 days . . . do you have:

• An emergency plan, including meeting places, emergency out-of-state contact numbers, and in case you must evacuate, a bug-out bag? 
• A battery operated NWS Emergency Radio to find out what was going on, and to get vital instructions from emergency officials?
• A decent first-aid kit, so that you can treat injuries?
• Enough non-perishable food and water on hand to feed and hydrate your family (including pets) for the duration?
• A way to provide light (and in cold climates, heat) for your family without electricity?   And a way to cook?  And to do this safely?
• A small supply of cash to use in case credit/debit machines are not working?
• Spare supply of essential prescription medicines that you or your family may need?

If your answer is `no’, you have some work to do.  A good place to get started is by visiting Ready.gov.
 

Unfortunately, a lot of people make the wrong choices when they do prepare.  They buy candles instead of battery operated lights, they use generators inside their house or garage, or resort to dangerous methods to cook or to heat their homes. 

As a result, when the power goes out, house fires and carbon monoxide poisonings go up. Each year hundreds of Americans are killed, and thousands affected, by CO poisoning (see In Carbon Monoxide: A Stealthy Killer).
 
 
Food safety after a power outage is another concern, and is something I covered a couple of years ago in USDA: Food Safety When The Power Goes Out.
 

While preparedness may seem like a lot of work, it really isn’t.  

You don’t need an underground bunker, an armory, or 2 years worth of dehydrated food.  But you do need the basics to carry on for a week or two, and a workable family (or business) emergency/disaster plan.
 
For more information on how to prepare, I would invite you  to visit:

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm

READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/

AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

Hurricane Preparedness 2016

# 11,392


Despite the damage inflicted upon the Northeast in 2012 by super storm Sandy, the United States has not been hit by a land-falling major (CAT 3+) hurricane in more than 10 years - the last being Wilma in October of 2005.

While a welcomed lull, that's a lucky streak that won't go on forever, And the longer we go between big strikes, the less people tend to take the threat seriously. 

Well over 50 million Americans live in susceptible coastal areas, while further inland many more are susceptible to inland flooding and spin-off tornadoes.   

This past week has been Hurricane Preparedness Week, and FEMA, Ready.gov, and NOAA all are encouraging everyone living or working in hurricane vulnerable areas to take time to prepare for the upcoming season (June 1st - Nov 30th).

This from NOAA Weather Ready Nation. 

It only takes one storm to change your life and community.  

Tropical cyclones are among nature’s most powerful and destructive phenomena. If you live in an area prone to tropical cyclones, you need to be prepared. Even areas well away from the coastline can be threatened by dangerous flooding, destructive winds and tornadoes from these storms. The National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center issue watches, warnings, forecasts, and analyses of hazardous tropical weather. 

Hurricane Preparedness Week (May 15-21, 2016) is your time to prepare for a potential land-falling tropical storm or hurricane. Learn how with the daily tips below and related links. Share these with your friends and family to ensure that they're prepared. 

 Hurricane Preparedness Week 

The National Weather Service has this advice for preparing for Hurricane Season.

What to Do Before the Tropical Storm or Hurricane 

The best time to prepare for a hurricane is before hurricane season begins on June 1. It is vital to understand your home's vulnerability to storm surge, flooding, and wind. Here is your checklist of things do do BEFORE hurricane seasons begins.

• Know your zone: Do you live near the Gulf or Atlantic Coasts? Find out if you live in a hurricane evacuation area by contacting your local government/emergency management office or by checking the evacuation site website.

• Write or review your Family Emergency Plan: Before an emergency happens, sit down with your family or close friends and decide how you will get in contact with each other, where you will go and what you will do in an emergency. Keep a copy of this plan in your emergency supplies kit or another safe place where you can access it in the event of a disaster. Start at the Ready.Gov emergency plan webpage.

• Put Together an Emergency Supplies Kit: Put together a basic disaster supplies kit and consider storage locations for different situations. Check emergency equipment, such as flashlights, generators and storm shutters.

• Review Your Home Owners Insurance: Review your insurance policy to ensure that you have adequate coverage for your home.

• Understand NWS forecast products, especially the meaning of NWS watches and warnings.

• Download the NWS Hurricanes, Unleashing Nature's Fury booklet for more information about hurricanes.

When it comes to getting the latest information on hurricanes, your first stop should always be the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida. These are the real experts, and the only ones you should rely on to track and forecast the storm.

If you are on Twitter, you should also follow @FEMA, @CraigatFEMA, @NHC_Atlantic, @NHC_Pacific and@ReadyGov.

While living in a Hurricane zone requires extra planning, no matter where you live or work, you need to think about potential threats and how you will deal with them should one emerge.  

If not hurricanes, you may have to deal with blizzards, wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods . . . even terrorist attacks, or a pandemic. 

So you need to ask yourself -  If a disaster struck your region today, and the power went out, stores closed their doors, and water stopped flowing from your kitchen tap for the next 7 days . . . do you have: 

• An emergency plan, including meeting places, emergency out-of-state contact numbers, and in case you must evacuate, a bug-out bag? 
• A battery operated NWS Emergency Radio to find out what was going on, and to get vital instructions from emergency officials?
• A decent first-aid kit, so that you can treat injuries?
• Enough non-perishable food and water on hand to feed and hydrate your family (including pets) for the duration?
• A way to provide light (and in cold climates, heat) for your family without electricity?   And a way to cook?  And to do this safely?
• A small supply of cash to use in case credit/debit machines are not working?
• Spare supply of essential prescription medicines that you or your family may need?

If your answer is `no’, you have some work to do.  A good place to get started is by visiting Ready.gov.

Beyond having the basic skills and supplies for you and your family, I would strongly urge that you cultivate a network of  `disaster buddies ’ (see In An Emergency, Who Has Your Back?) among your friends, relatives, co-workers, and neighbors.

While being prepared doesn't guarantee a good outcome for you and your family, it certainly improves your odds.  To become better prepared as an individual, family, business owner, or community, I would invite you to visit the following preparedness sites.

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/index.shtm
READY.GOV http://www.ready.gov/
AMERICAN RED CROSS http://www.redcross.org/

And for more on increasing your level of preparedness, you might want to check out:

When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

#NatlPrep: Half Of All Americans Need An Earthquake Plan

#NatlPrep - The Gift Of Preparedness