NCDP’s Preparedness Wizard (Revisited)

 

 

# 8648

 

It’s summer, and for most American’s, disaster preparedness is the furthest thing from their minds.  

 

It is actually understandable; we’ve haven’t seen a major (CAT 3+) landfalling hurricane in the United States since October of 2005 (Wilma), we’ve seen far fewer tornadoes over the past two years than normal, and we’ve not had a truly destructive earthquake on our soil since the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

 

But, as the survivors of Hurricane Sandy will tell you, it doesn’t take a CAT 3 storm to ruin your whole day.  And while tornado outbreaks have been running below average for two years, that doesn’t mean we’ve been completely spared. The storm system last April that dropped roughly 80 tornadoes over 3 days claimed 35 lives across several states in the deep south.

April 27-30, 2014 Tornado Outbreak – Credit Wikipedia

 

And as far as earthquakes are concerned, we are seeing increased seismicity in Oklahoma (see USGS/OGS Joint Statement On Increased Earthquake Threat To Oklahoma), California , and Alaska.  Whether that portends something bigger in the near term is anyone’s guess, but big quakes down the road are considered inevitable.

 

Add in summer wild fires, tropical storms, droughts, solar storms, industrial accidents, terrorist attacks, and even a pandemic threat  . . . and there are plenty of reasons to get, and stay, prepared.

 

The National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health was established in 2003 in order to understand and improve the nation's capacity to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

 

Their website is a tremendous resource for all things preparedness related, and even offers FREE online certificate training courses, webinars, and lectures.

 

In their Video section you’ll find a great many offerings, and under Special Reports and White Papers you’ll find literally dozens of disaster related research papers and documents for your perusal. In other words, there’s more than enough here to keep you busy for quite some time.

 

But today I wanted to highlight their nifty Disaster Preparedness Wizard, an audio-visual online tool - which, in a few short minutes - can help you define, and then download  a personal disaster plan for you and your family. 

 

We looked at this tool several years ago, but it has been updated and improved since then, and is well worth another look. First, NCDP’s description of the wizard:

 

The NCDP Model for Disaster Preparedness

NCDP developed the “5 Action Steps to Personal Preparedness” model for the purpose of providing an easy way to think about preparedness that applies to any emergency or disaster. This is the way that we think about preparedness. Using this framework of 5 critical action steps will help you think through, plan, and create a family emergency plan.

Disasters can and do happen, sometimes with notice and other times, none at all. A storm can suddenly change its path, even slightly, and cause severe devastation. You can be prepared for any event. Being prepared is more than completing a checklist or assembling a kit. Being prepared requires planning based on thinking–thinking about the risks you face, the needs of your household and the way you and your family live and work day-to-day. It also means thinking about how you want to live during the days immediately following a disaster when government and community services may not be available, for days or weeks.

(Continue . . .)

 

The Wizard takes you through the steps of identifying your local risks and hazards (see below), and then formulating a plan to deal with them; including how much water & food to store, setting up a family communications plan, and making decisions on whether you will shelter-in-place or evacuate.

By using the wizard (which includes downloading, and filling out, the 9 page PDF workbook), you can quickly devise a basic family emergency plan in an orderly, and sensible manner.  As you use this wizard, you’ll be presented with a number of useful videos, lists, and links – all worth exploring.

 

Once you have put those preparations in place, you can then consider additional steps you might wish to take to help assure your family’s safety, and comfort, during and after a local disaster or emergency.

 

This preparedness wizard is also available (en español).

 

For more information on emergency 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 some of my preparedness blogs, including:

When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough

The Gift Of Preparedness: 2013

In An Emergency, Who Has Your Back?

NCDP’s Preparedness Wizard

 

 

Photo Credits – NCDP

 

 

# 6391

 

The National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health was established in 2003 in order to understand and improve the nation's capacity to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

 

Their website is a tremendous resource for all things preparedness related, and even offers FREE online certificate training courses, webinars, and lectures.

 

In their Video section,  you’ll find a number of offerings, including a TED Talk by NCDP Director Irwin Redlener on how to survive a nuclear attack.

 

And under Special Reports and White Papers you’ll find literally dozens of disaster related research papers and documents for your perusal.

 

In other words, there’s more than enough here to keep you busy for quite some time.

 

But today I wanted to highlight their Disaster Preparedness Wizard, which in a few short minutes can help you define, and then download  a personal disaster plan for you and your family.

 

By answering a few simple questions (no information is asked that will identify you beyond your first name), this wizard will steer you towards a basic level of preparedness. 

 

Along the way, you’ll also find helpful preparedness tips, like this one on purifying water.

 

 

Since the threats you will be faced with will vary depending upon your location, the first question asks where you live.  In my case, I responded with Florida, and here is the list of likely threats the program generated.

 

 

You will then answer a handful of questions on the number of Adults, children and pets in your household and any special needs they may have.

 

Once completed, you’ll be presented with on screen advice on how to prepare, and the option of downloading a multi-page personalized preparedness plan in PDF format.

 

For anyone new to prepping, and wondering just how to get started, this seems like an excellent organizational tool. It’s quick, easy, and you end up with a written plan.

 

Their recommendation of three days of food, water, and other supplies is a bare minimum, of course.  As I’ve written in the past (see When 72 Hours Isn’t Enough), in a major disaster you could end up wishing you had a week, or even two weeks worth of supplies.

But if you don’t already have a family disaster plan in place, getting prepared for even three days is a good initial goal.

 

 

September is National Preparedness Month, and as a coalition member, I’ll be writing extensively about preparedness issues all summer long.  

 

To read some of last year’s offerings select this link.