To WAR with STP

Last month was National Preparedness Month.

The question this month is are YOU more prepared this month than last?

It's been said, "Preparedness is a lifestyle".  It's a mindset.  The generations before us were more likely to be prepared AND they were more likely to help one another.  The Amish barn raising is an example.  When an Amish family has a disaster, ex. house fire, the COMMUNITY comes together to help the family.

Take aways for National Preparedness Month continue to be:

1.  Make a plan.  Get with your local emergency manager or American Red Cross to identify hazards one faces locally.  Any member of the Local Emergency Planning Committee would be able to help as well.

2.  Build a kit that supports the plan.  Don't forget communication.  Don't forget pets, including large animals.  Don't forget medicine.

3.  Practice the plan.  How will you know it will work?  Does Johnny know where to go after a house fire when you are not home?  What if you can't evacuate to Detroit, as your plan suggests?

4.  BE involved!  The subject "WAR with STP" has been a topic for many months.  When ALL Respond (WAR), it's with STP ... Same Ten People.  Do you know your Neighbors and are you in a Neighborhood Watch Program?  Are they ready for the next ice storm, tornado, flood, earthquake?  Are you aware that the American Red Cross and Salvation Army have local opportunities to serve?  Are you a member of your Local Emergency Planning Committee? Can you help change the STP?

Last month was National Preparedness Month.  However, preparedness is a daily action.

National Preparedness Day

Preparedness is not something one does one month out of the year.


Preparedness is something you make a part of your daily life.


In order to be really prepared, one must make a conscious decision that "I will prepare" and follow that with definitive steps to become prepared.


One of the barriers to this, however, is knowing where to start.  It's a giant elephant to some that overwhelms their effort to begin.


Do One Thing is an effort to overcome that challenge.  With Do 1 Thing you can take small steps that make a big difference in an emergency.


The disaster supplies kit calendar on the City of Altus web site is another way to carve out manageable steps to disaster resilience.


National Preparedness Month may be winding down but your job is not over.


Please Prepare.

Community Emergency Response Team

One of the overlooked initiatives of the Citizen Corp program is the Community Emergency Response Team effort.

These groups, often neighbors that already know one another or churches that worship together or civic groups that have an interest in helping their fellow man, complete a basic disaster education program.  The program is not to replace professionals in rescue.  The program is really designed to protect the rescuer, i.e. to teach the student how to know when to not become a victim.

Schools, churches, and businesses have adopted CERT training as a way to insure their facilities have a way to help and recover.

If your group is interested in CERT training, the Oklahoma Department of Homeland Security will provide free instruction to those who submit the application.

Communication

Communication, in a disaster, is the first thing to fail.

Phone lines are overloaded.  Radio channels are jammed.  Cell phone towers run out of juice.

However, there's one group that seems to be what FEMA Adminisatrator Craig Fugate calls "the last line of defense".  That's the amateur radio operator.

Hams have had a long history of disaster help.

From the Muskogee Amateur Radio Club helping at the fifth deadliest tornado in Oklahoma history to the local Skywarn program providing annual severe weather training to the local club practicing the annual Field Day event with the American Radio Relay League, ham radio continues to be THE way an area resident can communicate with one another.

Won't you take time this year to find a local club?  Classes are offered periodically.

This National Preparedness Month tip asks "will you bet your life on the communications you have right now?"

Prepare

In this second week of National Preparedness Month, what is your focus?

Oklahomans are known to be a resilient bunch.  May 3, 1999 tornado, the Murrah Bombing, the Woodward tornado are just three extreme examples of disasters in this State.

Emergencies happen every day though.  Kitchen fires, auto wrecks, lawnmower mishaps are just three everyday events in America.

The Emergency Management saying "It's not a matter of IF; it's a matter of WHEN" comes every day with an encouragement to:

1.  Make a Plan
2.  Build a kit to support the Plan
3.  Practice the PLAN

Then one is in a position to help others.

Learn Disaster Communications

WASHINGTON, Aug. 31, 2011 - Recent weather events such as Hurricane Irene, the earthquake on the East Coast and other natural disasters highlight the need for Americans to prepare for emergencies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the American Red Cross, the Ad Council and Google Crisis Response are collaborating to launch a new preparedness web resource, Get Tech Ready, on behalf of the Readycampaign.

Released just before the start of National Preparedness Month, this new resource educates individuals and families about how using modern-day technology can help them prepare, adapt and recover from disruptions brought on by emergencies or disasters.

A recent American Red Cross survey showed that the internet, including online news sites and social media platforms, is the third most popular way for Americans to gather emergency information and let their loved ones know they are safe.  

"As technology becomes more a part of our daily lives, people are turning to it during emergencies as well. We need to utilize these tools, to the best of our abilities, to engage and inform the public, because no matter how much federal, state and local officials do, we will only be successful if the public is brought in as part of the team," FEMA Administrator, W. Craig Fugate.

"During Hurricane Irene, we saw people using new technologies in many ways, whether it was thousands of people downloading our new shelter finder App or others using our Safe and Well site and social media to let their friends and family know they are OK, " said Gail McGovern, President and CEO of the American Red Cross. "People now have more varied resources available at their fingertips that they can use before, during and after emergencies."

Get Tech Ready provides Americans with tips on how to use technological resources before, during and after a crisis to communicate with loved ones and manage your financial affairs. Preparedness tips on the website include:

• 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 or on a secure and remote area or flash or jump drive that you can keep readily available so they can be accessed from anywhere; and
• Create an Emergency Information Document using the Ready.gov Family Emergency Plan template in Google Docs or by downloading theReady Family Emergency Plan to record your emergency plans.  

"Get Tech Ready is a resource that will truly help people in the US and around the world understand how they can use widely available technology to prepare for potential crises," said Nigel Snoud, Product Manager, Google Crisis Response.  "We're thrilled to be working with FEMA, the American Red Cross, and the Ad Council on this public service project."

"We are delighted to collaborate with FEMA, Google and the American Red Cross to expand our Ready messages through this new web site to educate more Americans about the vital need to get prepared in advance of an potential emergency," said Peggy Conlon, president & CEO of the Ad Council. "The web site will provide access to critical resources to Americans addressing the importance of using technology as part of their individual and family preparedness plans."

Launched in 2003, National Preparedness Month is designed to encourage Americans to take steps to prepare for emergencies throughout the year. The Ready campaign was also launched in 2003 by FEMA in partnership with the Ad Council. Since its launch, media outlets have donated more than $900 million in advertising time and space for the PSAs. The new PSAs will air in advertising time that will be entirely donated by the media.

FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

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.

AMERICAN RED CROSS

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit http://www.redcross.org/ or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

The Advertising Council

The Ad Council (www.adcouncil.org) is a private, non-profit organization that marshals talent from the advertising and communications industries, the facilities of the media, and the resources of the business and non-profit communities to produce, distribute and promote public service campaigns on behalf of non-profit organizations and government agencies. The Ad Council addresses issue areas such as improving the quality of life for children, preventive health, education, community well-being, environmental preservation and strengthening families.

FEMA does not endorse any non-Federal government organizations or products.