Give the Gift of Preparedness this Holiday Season

This holiday season, one of the best gifts you can give your loved ones is the gift of disaster preparedness. Giving emergency supplies to help build a disaster supply kit and having an emergency communications plan can go a long way to ensure that your family is prepared for any emergency.

A list of possible gifts that may assist in disasters includes:
• Disaster kits for homes, offices and cars (first aid kits; food, water and prescription medications for 72 hours, extra clothing, blankets, and flashlights)
• NOAA weather radios with extra batteries
• Enrollment in a CPR or first-aid class
• Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors
• Fire extinguishers (for the kitchen, garage, car, etc.)
• Foldable ladders for second-story escape in a fire
• Winter car kits (emergency flares, shovels, ice scrapers, flashlights and fluorescent distress flags, jumper cables)
• Pet disaster kits (food, water, leashes, dishes, toys, and carrying case or crate)
• Battery powered lamps

Emergency supplies are important, but it is also essential to discuss what your family will do in case of an emergency. This year, consider at least one of these gift ideas. You just may save the life of a friend or family member. For more information and preparedness tips, please visit Ready.gov and FEMA.gov

Preparedness Considerations for the Pets, Livestock, and Animals in Our Homes and in Our Lives

Click on this link to log in at 1:50 pm on Thursday, Sept. 22, 2011
https://connect.hsin.gov/pets/

No registration is required, and the webinar is free.

From the home to the farm, pets, livestock, and animals are an important part of our lives. However, when it comes to preparing for disasters, they can pose some unique challenges and it's important that they are included in emergency and disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.

If you are part of an organization that does work in the pet and livestock field, or you are a pet or livestock owner, this call is for you. Join us and hear from leaders in animal emergency management about:

• Disaster Preparedness Resources and Reimbursements available to those with pets and animals in their lives


• Emerging trends and considerations in pet and animal emergency management
  Personal experiences with animal emergency management
  


• What's required in your emergency planning concerning pets and animals
  


• What you can do to bring animal preparedness to your home, organization, and community.

September is National Preparedness Month

FEMA Encourages Americans to Participate in September’s National Preparedness Month
Eighth Annual National Preparedness Month in September: "A Time to Remember. A Time to Prepare," Encourages Americans to Take Simple Steps to Prepare for Emergencies

WASHINGTON - The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Ready Campaign, in partnership with Citizen Corps and the Ad Council, today announced the launch of new web tools that will make it easier for individuals and organizations throughout the nation to join the 2011 National Preparedness Month (NPM) coalition and pledge their support to help prepare their families, businesses and communities for emergencies of all kinds.

The eighth annual NPM will kickoff this September, using the slogan: "A Time to Remember. A Time to Prepare." The campaign seeks to transform awareness into action by encouraging all Americans to take the necessary steps to ensure that their homes, workplaces and communities are prepared for disasters and emergencies of all kinds.

"As we move forward with planning for this year's events and activities, we also recognize that this September marks the ten year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks," said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate. "By doing what we can to ensure that our communities, and our nation, are prepared to respond and recover from all types of disasters and hazards, we honor the memory of those who were lost that day."

Individuals and groups can now register to become NPM coalition members by visiting http://community.fema.gov. Once registered, members have access to a toolkit that includes suggestions for activities and events, templates, articles, banners and customizable materials. Coalition members also have access to an events calendar allowing them to post and promote preparedness events, share success stories, and participate in national and regional discussion forums to engage with fellow coalition members and FEMA representatives.

By hosting events, promoting volunteer programs and sharing emergency preparedness information, coalition members can help ensure that their communities are prepared for emergencies. Becoming a coalition member is easy and free, so register now to get started. Nearly 2,000 coalition members have already joined this year's campaign.
While NPM is held each September, FEMA's Ready Campaign promotes individual emergency preparedness at home, in the workplace, and throughout America's communities throughout the year. Ready is a national campaign, produced in partnership with The Ad Council, designed to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond to all types of emergencies, including natural disasters and potential terrorist attacks.

The Ready Campaign's websites (ready.gov and listo.gov) and toll-free numbers (1-800-BE-READY and 1-888-SE-LISTO) provide free emergency preparedness information and resources available in English and Spanish. Additionally, through FEMA's partnership with the Ad Council, public service announcements are available to increase the American public's involvement in preparedness.

###

Spring Ahead To Prepare For Disasters

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Daylight Savings Time in the United States starts on the second Sunday in March of each year and the Federal Emergency Management Agency encourages all Americans to use the change to daylight savings time to update emergency preparedness plans. For years, firefighters and safety professionals have asked the public to change smoke alarm batteries throughout their homes, as they move their clocks ahead. According to FEMA Regional Administrator Ken Murphy (former Oregon Emergency Management Director), the March ritual of making homes safer from fire is also a great opportunity to review disaster preparedness plans and restock disaster kits.

"You know, FEMA is not the nation’s emergency management team. True, we are an important part, but still—just a part of the team – a team that includes the entire federal family, state, local and tribal governments, faith-based and non-profit organizations, and especially the public," said Murphy. "Let’s all take full advantage of this year’s switch to Daylight Savings Time and resolve to be better prepared in 2011: build or restock your disaster kit, make or update your disaster plan, and stay informed of the hazards in your area."

FEMA’s Resolve to be Ready in 2011 campaign promotes Whole Community involvement in disaster preparedness. "The key to successful disaster response, regardless of the nature of the event, is personal preparedness," continued Murphy. "And no matter how busy or hectic our daily routine, we all need to take the time to take positive action to prepare ourselves, our loved ones and our communities in the event of severe weather, earthquake—or any other major disaster."

Resolve to be Ready in 2011 is led by FEMA’s Ready Campaign in partnership with Citizen Corps and The Advertising Council. For more information on the Ready Campaign and Citizen Corps, visit www.fema.gov, Ready.gov and CitizenCorps.gov. Follow FEMA online at www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Follow Administrator Craig Fugate's activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema. Social media links are provided for reference only. FEMA does not endorse non-government websites, companies or applications.

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Disaster Preparedness Ap for cell phone

Check out this disaster preparedness ap for your phone

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/disaster-readiness-2011/id356750923?mt=8

Thanks to the Twitter feed of READYColorado for bringing this my attention.

The challenge of citizen preparedness is well illustrated by this letter to the editor to a newspaper in Canada during that nation’s Emergency Preparedness Week. I think anyone involved in public preparedness will empathize:

To the editor:

I guess everyone in Scugog Township is prepared for any emergency that may arise.

They must be, because at the end of Emergency Preparedness Week, on Saturday May 8, the No. 1 fire hall in Port Perry was open to everyone to learn about numerous ways to prepare for emergencies, and no one came.

I know my wife and I were not the only ones disappointed with the turnout. Five speakers were lined up to discuss anything and everything needed to prepare for disasters and emergencies of all kinds.

Some of the emergency situations noted in the past that have affected residents of Scugog were H1N1, increasing windstorms and severe summer weather numerous times, resulting in downed trees and other damage as well as the blackout of 2003.

Do you remember what you and your family went through during that blackout? Were you prepared? It could happen again. Will you be ready? Have you ever considered what could happen if flooding were to occur here? Think about broken dams, torrential rain and backed-up storm drains and septics.

At the seminar, tables were set up with giveaway information and supplies. Volunteers were on hand to inform and assist with information and to answer questions. Enbridge set up and prepared hot dogs, hamburgers and pop for visitors.

We want to thank the chief, the mayor and councillors and all the volunteers that were on hand for this event.

Bruno and Darlene Gauweiler Caesarea

current statistics on citizen readiness “very concerning and frankly kind of frightening,”

Speaking at the Center For National Policy recently, Timothy Manning, FEMA Deputy Administrator for Protection & National Preparedness, said that the current statistics on citizen readiness “very concerning and frankly kind of frightening,” and he spoke about some of the agency’s efforts to strengthen the nation’s resilience to disasters.

At the Center’s event, “Disasters & Resilience,” Manning was questioned by the moderator Stephen Flynn, the Center’s new President, and one of the leading experts on the subject. The full text can be found here. It’s worth reading for those interested in preparedness policy.

In response to a question from Flynn about making preparedness and resilience part of the national culture, Manning acknowledged the challenge:

…the numbers are very concerning and frankly kind of frightening I think. We did a survey last year as part of our community preparedness programs, where we found the same numbers we’ve seen for a great number of years. So what we’ve been doing, we’ve been trying to engage the public for about 50 years in roughly the same way, all through the civil defense era, the Cold War, and to traditional emergency management now. And it’s really about PSAs and talking to the public about – some variation on have a plan, get involved. It’s really been about the same message and engaging the same way. And we’ve always seen the response engagement of the public in about 50 percent, hasn’t really moved. Slides a little bit here and there.

But what’s most concerning is that when you actually deconstruct that number and you ask, “have you actually done this, have you done this, have you done this,” the things that we mean when we say “are you prepared,” the number’s actually in the 30s. It’s actually about 37 or 40 percent. Most people, as like 67 percent of respondents, say that they plan on relying on government, that they won’t take any actions and they plan on relying on government in the first couple of days.

It’s very concerning. And we’re just discussing that the best response is the one we don’t have to mount. What we need to do is build our communities, build our societies to a point where they are prepared. But I think, like we’re trying to do across the whole spectrum of homeland security preparedness, we have to recognize our communities and we have to plan for the community, not just plan for easy. So we have – we say preparedness means this. Maybe we need to be a little bit more sophisticated than that. Maybe what we need to say is these are the things you can do to be prepared. But work at a more – work through our actual communities.

One interesting community-based initiative that Manning mentioned is an effort to build the preparedness of Los Angeles firefighters and their families to develop them as leaders (along the lines of the CERT program) in a potential disaster response.



There were a number of useful preparedness and resilience related topics covered during the discussion. But I wanted to highlight one point that Manning addressed on whether the agency was embracing an “all hazards” philosophy:


All-hazard – the old – the traditional doctrinal approach to emergency management has been one of preparing for all hazards and that was really the catch phrase, “all hazards emergency management.” And what that really meant was a maximization of resources, a realization that where the majority of the work, the preparedness and response work, happens is at the community level. It’s not at the federal level. The federal government’s job is mainly to step in and assist governors in assisting their local communities in a response. And when you get to the community level, the largest of the communities, in cities like New York and Los Angeles, notwithstanding those resources just aren’t there to do the level of detail planning required for each particular eventuality.

What we also know is that there is so much variation in any particular hazard that that doesn’t really bring a lot of value to the table sometimes. I think a good example is in the pandemic flu preparedness work that we’ve done over the past couple of years. It was really predicated on avian influenza and then influenza virus migrating from Asia, in East Asia.

When H1N1 popped up in North America, it was a novel virus really originating here, much of the detailed work we did was not as usable as it could have been had we taken a broader approach. The all-hazard preparedness is a way to think about that. Where it gets or it can get difficult or it can get tricky is that there are obviously very specific things that are required for some specific hazards. There is those large percentages, that 50 to 60 percent of the work that you need to do to prepare for a hurricane is also the same you need to do in response to an earthquake or an accident or a terrorist attack. But there are those – the balance of things are very different.

The response, the capability, the equipment, the training you need to respond to a nuclear, a ND, a nuclear detonation is different than the response, the capability, the training, the equipment you need to respond to a radiological accident. So we have to keep that in mind. So while we can focus a great deal of our efforts on those few things that have value across the whole spectrum of accidents, the normal daily public safety to natural disasters or intentional terrorist attacks, we cannot lose sight of those things that are specific to the individual hazards or a particular attack tactic.

There are large numbers of things that we need to individually focus on as well. But if I may, I think that another important piece to this, though, it’s not just been an all-hazard preparedness in the way that we’ve been doing it for a long time. That there is a – there can sometimes be a tendency to say that all-hazard emergency management is simply a back to the future, a slide back to the way we had done in the 1990s. But that loses sight of what we’ve learned. And the recent shift towards thinking of things in the terms of resilience is really another way to think of all-hazard emergency management, where it’s less about what are the discrete preparedness things we need to do to be able to respond to this set of disasters, but what are those things that we can do in our communities that offer second and third order effects. They get us where we want to be.

I agree with Manning that the old ‘all hazards’ framework is not adequate for the range of present threats — for policy makers, responders and the public. From a citizen perspective on what we need to know to be prepared and informed, there are definitely commonalities between hazards. However the differences, as Manning points out, can be important. In fact, I have argued on the blog that when it comes to what the public should be aware of there are sometimes commonalities that cut across hazards (ie. pandemic/bioterror attack) rather than all hazards and some threats may need to be redefined to reflect their real impact (ie. should a ‘dirty bomb’ or chemical attack be considered a WMD along with a nuclear and biological attack?).

But modifying the all hazards approach also raises the stakes for the government to inform the public of what more they need to know about various threats (which by and large has not been done). And, I would contend that the more Americans have been told beforehand will only increase their resilience and ability to bounce back quickly from disasters (particularly terrorism).

FEMA News Release on Preparing Pets for Disasters

Today FEMA put out a news release on how pet owners can get their pets ready for disasters, especially since hurricane season is coming soon. You can read more at http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=51293

WASHINGTON - With less than a month until the beginning of the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season on June 1, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) urges Americans to ensure their families, homes and businesses are prepared for the risks associated with hurricanes, tropical storms and other emergencies. Individuals and families are encouraged to have a family communications plan, put together an emergency kit and include their pets in their planning efforts. FEMA recognizes Saturday, May 8, 2010 as National Animal Disaster Preparedness Day.

"As hurricane season approaches, FEMA is coordinating with state and local officials to ensure that all communities along the coast are prepared to respond. But we can only be as prepared as the public, and so it's important that everyone take steps now to help keep their family safe in the event of a hurricane or other emergency. This includes their pets," said FEMA Deputy Administrator Rich Serino.

FEMA encourages pet owners to take the following steps:

Be informed: Know what emergencies happen in your community and how those events could impact your pet;

Prepare: Put together pet emergency kit specific to your pets needs; and

Plan: Develop a plan for what you will do with your pets in the event of an emergency. To learn more about the steps pet owners can take to prepare your pets for a disaster.

To learn what you can do to prepare your family and your pets, visit www.Ready.gov.

To view a message from FEMA Deputy Administrator Rich Serino, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF9qcLyHQzo

Preparedness Gift Ideas from FEMA

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Each and every year millions of American lives are disrupted by natural disasters ranging from earthquakes and tsunamis to floods and wildfire. But all disasters—large or small—share a common attribute: they focus attention on the importance of disaster preparedness and the critical need to take action before disaster strikes. The trick is to convert good intentions into good deeds, and according to Acting FEMA Regional Administrator Dennis Hunsinger, there's no time like the holidays.

"Disaster-ready gifts can save lives, and are a wonderful way of welcoming in 2010," said Hunsinger. "Helping to better prepare neighbors, friends and loved ones for emergencies is a great way to say 'I care.'"

Emergency and preparedness items that might make great gifts this Holiday Season include:

NOAA Weather Radios and extra batteries.
Enrollment in a CPR or first-aid class.
Smoke detectors.
Appropriate fire extinguishers (kitchen, garage, car).
Disaster kits for homes, offices and autos (first aid kits, food, water and prescription medications for 72 hours, extra clothing, blankets, flashlights).
Foldable ladders for second-story escape in a fire.
Car kits (emergency flares, shovels, ice scrapers, flashlights and fluorescent distress flags).
Pet Disaster Kits (food, water, leashes, dishes and carrying case or crate).
A camp stove with extra fuel.
The gift of a gardener to cut back combustible vegetation from wildfire-vulnerable homes.
National Flood Insurance.

A wealth of information and preparedness tips is available from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's READY.GOV site at: www.ready.gov and from FEMA at: www.fema.gov.

Stay informed of FEMA's activities online: videos and podcasts available at www.fema.gov/medialibrary and www.youtube.com/fema; follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/femainfocus twitter.com/femaregion10 and on FaceBook at www.facebook.com/fema.

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Oregon Emergency Management encourages you to follow us on www.twitter.com/baileyjn

Prepare Now For Winter Storms - from the Red Cross

PORTLAND, Ore. – Oregon is prone to winter storms, and the Oregon Trail Chapter of the American Red Cross urges residents to take steps now to stay safer when severe weather threatens.


"By preparing together for winter storms, we can make our families safer and our communities stronger," Eric Corliss, Director of Emergency Services said. "We can help you and your family create a disaster preparedness plan now, before our communities are threatened by dangerously low temperatures, snow, ice and strong winds."


As with any disaster, preparation can be the difference between life and death. The Red Cross recommends that individuals and families prepare for winter storms by:

Assembling an Emergency Preparedness Kit:

Pack a winter-specific supply kit that includes a warm coat, hat, mittens or gloves, and water-resistant boots, along with extra blankets and extra warm clothing. Sand or non-clumping kitty litter is good to have on hand to help make walkways or steps less slippery. Additionally, make sure you have a first aid kit and essential medications, canned food and can opener, bottled water, flashlights and a battery-powered radio with extra batteries in your home in the event of a power outage.


Heeding Storm Warnings:

A winter storm WATCH means winter storm conditions are possible within the next 36 to 48 hours. People in a watch area should review their winter storm plans and stay informed about weather conditions via NOAA Weather radio, or local radio or television stations. A winter storm WARNING means that life-threatening, severe winter conditions have begun or will begin within 24 hours. Individuals in a warning area should take precautions immediately.


Preparing Your Home and Car:

Winterize your vehicle and keep the gas tank full, which will help to keep the fuel line from freezing. Make sure your home is properly insulated by installing storm windows or covering windows with plastic from the inside to help keep cold air out. Maintain heating equipment and chimneys by having them cleaned and inspected every year. Running water, even at a trickle, helps to prevent pipes from freezing.

For more winter storm safety tips, visit www.oregonredcross.org/winter. A free online preparedness course is also available at www.oregonredcross.org/beredcrossready.

Preparedness should be a lifestyle

We received a message from one of our readers this week with some great ideas about being prepared for emergencies large and small.

Dwight Racke has experienced all types of disasters, including hurricanes and earthquakes. He thinks disaster preparedness should be a lifestyle.

Here are some of Racke's suggestions:

-People should think of the family car as an RV. Keep a box full of snacks and bottled water under one of the seats. When running errands with active kids, they can snack instead of becoming crabby. (I did get an interesting call on this one saying this is why American's are Obese - especially state workers, but I think you get the point)

-Nighttime sporting events often get chilly, but you could have your lap blankets tucked away in the trunk.

-Emergency preparedness supplies always should be handy for small or large disasters and should be enough to help you "camp out" if needed following a larger event.

As Racke said in his e-mail, most of "disaster preparedness" boils down to camping.

That's a great way to think about it. You need the same items that you would take if you were on a camping trip.

Keep your camping gear stored away from the home. If an earthquake strikes and your family has to flee the house, you may be able to get to your camping gear and have everything you need to get by for two weeks.

During many large scale disasters, some areas are so devastated that people have to camp out on their front lawns for days or weeks waiting for assistance.

Let's do as Racke suggests and take baby steps in the way of disaster preparedness.

Jennifer Bailey, formerly of FEMA, is the public affairs coordinator of Oregon Emergency Management. She may be reached at (503) 378-2911, Ext. 22294 or jbailey@oem.state.or.us.

Oregon 150 Hispanic Heritage Celebration

Today inside the Capital there will be tables of information and many folks celebrating 150 years of Hispanic/Latino contributions to Oregon.

Oregon Emergency Management will be giving out preparedness information. A Woodburn firefighter has graciously volunteered to help me out today. Come see us.

September is National Preparedness Month

September is National Preparedness Month, and it's a good time for Oregon Emergency Management to remind us all that we have a responsibility to protect ourselves, our families and our communities during emergencies.

Emergencies do happen, but taking action now can help minimize their effect on our lives.
This year, according to Rebecca Marquis, the acting director of the Ready Campaign, NPM is focusing on helping Americans understand what it means to be really "Ready."

Preparedness goes beyond fire alarms, smoke detectors, deadbolt locks, and extra food in the pantry.

Being "Ready" includes: getting an emergency supply kit (72-hour kit at least), making a family emergency plan, being informed about emergencies and their appropriate responses, and getting involved in community efforts such as Citizen Corps.

For information about NPM or for help getting your family, business or community prepared, call (800) BEREADY or go to http://www.ready.gov/, http://www.listo.gov/, or http://www.citizencorps.gov/, where you'll find free preparedness resources.

Emergencies can happen anytime to anyone. Are you really ready?

Ready Campaign for children - National Preparedness Month - September

By Rebecca Marquis, Acting Dirctor, Ready Campaign

While you may think you have everything you need in the event of an emergency on hand and could wing it on the fly, you might not be as prepared as you think. You are your family's first responder, so you need to proactively prepare for emergencies . Local, state and national authorities are going to help, but they may not be able to get to you right away.

September is National Preparedness Month, which is a great time to get your family Ready. Preparedness goes beyond fire alarms, smoke detectors, dead-bolt locks and extra food in the pantry. The Ready Campaign has made it easy with four simple steps: get an Emergency Supply Kit; make a Family Emergency Plan; be informed about emergencies and their appropriate responses; and get involved in community efforts.

To help get your family starte, Ready Kids is a family-friendly tool to help parents and teachers educate children, ages 8 - 12 about emergencies and how they can help families better prepare. The Ready Kids Web site at http://www.ready.gov/ features fun activities such as a Scavenger Hunt, Pack It Up Matching game, crossword puzzles and coloring pages, as well as age-appropriate, step-by-step instructions on what families can do to better prepare for emergencies and the role kids can play in that effort.

The Ready Campaign consulted with a number of organizations experienced in education and children's health to develp Ready Kids, and their expertise helped present the emergency preparedness information included in the Ready Kids program in a way that is understandable and approprate for children.

It's important to address this topic and explain to your children that families can prepare for emergencies before they take place and that they can help, too. By doing so, you can alleviate anxiety if an emergency does occur and help to nurture a more prepared society for generations to come. Visit www.ready.gov/kids today and get Ready!

Emergency Kits!

www.quakedog.com/emergencykits72

Don't forget! There are all sizes, types, costs...and it's easy!!!

If you want to put your own emergency kit together, here is a list of items. If you are too busy and/or lazy like me, go online and buy one. The cost ends up being about the same, they are very compact, have a greater lifespan for the water, etc. and come in the mail - no fuss, no muss.

Basic supplies:
• food, water, clean air, and life-sustaining items (meds) that you require.
• Water - one gallon of water per person per day for at least three days, for drinking and sanitation
• Food - at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food adn a can opener if needed
• Batter-powered or hand crank radio (maybe a NOAA Weather radio) extra batteries
• Flashlight and extra batteries
• First aid kit
• Whistle to signal for help
• Dust mask to help filter contaminated air and plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
• Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
• Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
• Local maps
• Pet food, extra water and supplies for your pet or service animal

Beyond the basics:

• Medications, eyeglasses, hearing aids, etc.
• Important documents
• matches, blankets, change of clothes
• contact information
• money

Being prepared in advance makes sense!

Be Prepared for ALL types of disasters - Statesman Column

August 12, 2009
Jennifer Bailey • August 12, 2009


Though some areas are more prone to certain types of disasters, for example an earthquake in California or terrorist attacks in New York, no area on Earth is completely immune.

As much as people travel these days, you might end up somewhere in a disaster that you never considered before.

There is nothing smarter than being prepared for the unexpected.

There are two types of trauma: physical and mental. Physical trauma includes the body's response to serious injury and threat.

Studies of survivors have found that people who had thought about possible disastrous events in advance reacted faster and better than people who had not. You do not want to have to think during a disaster, you want to react appropriately and quickly.

No one wants to dwell on scary things, but planning evacuation routes out of your home and knowing where you would go is just like knowing where the exits are at the movie theater or having a smoke detector in your home.

Myth 5 we're all gonna die anyway

Some events like a weapons of mass destruction attack might kill larger numbers of people, but that doesn't mean widespread destruction is a guaranteed thing. In fact, for widespread destruction, a top-grade WMD must be expertly and precisely applied under ideal conditions. This does not meand that WMDs are to be ignored or that they are nothing to fear, it's just that "Mass Destruction" does NOT mean "Total Destrcution" at all.

As in any emergency situation, those who are prepared and have run through scenarios in their minds are more likely to survive. I've been reading a book about a ship in a hurricane and it was interesting to see the different reactions to the crisis.

Some spent their time thinking of what they would do if the ship sank or turned over. They planned their escape routes, thought about what they would take, put valuables in waterproof containers and taped them to their bodies. Others just stood around in shock, imobilized. They could not believe that this large ship would sink (which it did) and therefore did not prepare.

There is no reason to live in fear and the best way to NOT be afraid is to be prepared for all contingencies. You won't always be home when a disaster hits. You might be at work, on vacation, or in another state. Take a few minutes to think it through. Where will you go? Who will you contact and how? Just a few precautions and thoughts can save your life.

Myth Number 4 - It's too hard

"Good preparedness is too expensive and too complicated"

Nothing could be further from the truth. the problem is, we haven't made preparedness a part of our overall education. we get more preparedenss info on an airline flight than we get as citizens. most of us aren't taught that there are literally thousands of subtle, simple, and economical things we can do to drastically improve our emergency readiness. The notion that it might be expensive or complicated has come from companies that aggressively market high-prices unnecessary gear.

You can easily pick up one item each time you go to the grocery store. One week, a flashlight, next some energy bars, then handy wipes, jug of water, radio and batteries, matches, filter masks, a blanket, pet food, and whatever else your family can't do without. :-)

On the other hand, I personally was too lazy or busy or whatever to do this so did purchase a kit online at www.quakedog.com/emergencykits72. I found these kits to be the best and cheapest although I did not do an exhaustive search. I added my own medications and an extra set of clothes and it is in my trunk.

It is interesting that when we know a storm is coming, there is a run on the grocery store and we get prepared but when we don't know when a disaster will happen we leave it all to chance. Hmmm. Comments?

Prepare now to prevent earthquake loss - Statesman Journal July 1

Simple steps can minimize damage to property, family

"We cannot prevent earthquakes, but we can learn to live with them and to survive them. When the inevitable earthquake strikes, we can be ready. But today, we are not." — Robert S. Yeats, Professor Emeritus Oregon State University and author of Living with Earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest does have earthquakes as evidenced in 2001 by the Nisqually quake near Olympia, Wash. This caused toppled chimneys, collapsed buildings and bridges, disrupted gas, electric, and phone service, injured 407 people, and resulted in one death due to a heart attack.

Once an earthquake hits it is too late to protect your family and home. But there are ways to prepare now. Sometimes a little time and a few dollars are all you need to make things safer.
Homeowners, have your home evaluated by a structural design engineer to find out how to strengthen porches, decks, sliding glass doors, canopies, carports, and garage doors.

Check to see if your house is bolted to its foundations and the chimney is properly secured. Anchor fuel tanks and wood-burning stoves securely to the floor and repair defective electrical wiring.

Consider purchasing an emergency generator and use it only in well ventilated areas.
Inside, hang pictures and mirrors away from beds and seating areas. Secure the TV, computer and stereo and strap the water heater to wall studs. Bolt bookcases, china cabinets and other tall furniture to wall studs and brace or anchor top-heavy objects. Secure kitchen equipment to the floor, wall or countertop.

These are only a few of the things you can do to help reduce the probability of serious injury and major expense from an earthquake.

Be prepared — for your family's sake.

For more information about earthquakes, go to www.oregongeology.org
Jennifer Bailey, formerly of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is the Public Affairs Coordinator of Oregon Emergency Management. She may be reached at (503) 378-2911, Ext. 22294, or jbailey@oem.state.or.us. Additional Facts

Learn more
Send questions about emergency preparedness to be answered in this column to jbailey@oem.state.or.us. Other information may be found at www.oregon. gov/omd/oem or www.fema.gov.

How do I know if I live in a flood zone?

There are a few ways to find out if you live in a flood zone or what the flood risk is at your location. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has a great web site at www.floodsmart.gov where you can enter your address in the One-step flood risk profile on the left side of the page.

This will tell if your property is at low to severe risk of flooding. It will also give you an estimate of what flood insurance premiums may cost and a list of insurance agents in your area.
On www.floodsmart.gov you can also find information on flood insurance benefits, types of policies, questions to ask your insurance agent, questions to ask your real estate agent, and how to buy flood insurance.
If you already have a home-owner’s insurance agent, they should also be able to tell you the level of flood risk for your property. You could also contact your local City or County Emergency Manager or planning department.

After purchasing flood insurance there is a 30 waiting period for it to take effect so this is a very good time to take action.

Please send questions concerning disasters, emergencies and preparedness to jbailey@oem.state.or.us. I will be happy to answer them in the column.