Preparedness: A S.T.E.P. In the Right Direction
Emergency Preparedness has been close to the forefront on my mind over the past few years--mainly a nagging reminder that I still have stuff to do for the eight of us to be self-reliant and prepared in an Emergency.
Sure, we hear about all the natural disasters that are happening everywhere but 'here:' Tsunamis, Earthquakes, extreme winters, hurricanes, wild fires, mudslides, etc. But my family, personally, has had enough experiences locally on the Oregon Coast (tsunami warnings, major wind storms that wiped out power and communications, unemployment) to keep us reminded that things could get worse at our house too.
Emergencies are not limited to major natural disasters either--it could be unemployment, economic struggle, or house fire, or other accident.
Many resources are available to help you move in the direction of self-reliance and preparedness: 72-hour kits, food/water storage, financial advice, etc. Community Organizations (such as the Red Cross) and local/national governmental agencies (FEMA and NOAA for example) are also a good resources for disaster preparedness information.
Some simple governmental resources I utilize frequently is the Tsunami Watcher email list from NOAA that sends me an email whenever there is an earthquake that could cause worry for an Tsunami; and the Earthquake Email Notification from http://www.usgs.gov/ that sends me an email about earthquakes that fit the parameters I selected. You would be amazed at how many emails I get from these two notification sources. Of course NOAA also gives reliable weather details and storm warnings on their site...for hurricanes as well.
One resource I'm looking forward to is an Emergency Preparedness Workshop sponsored by Warrenton S.T.E.P. (Storm, Tsunami, & Emergency Preparedness.) It looks like they are bringing in several local professionals to give presentations on different aspects of emergency preparedness. Plus it sounds like it will be interactive enough where the community will be able to share good ideas with each other. Since the best truth comes from the source, please check out the official information: http://wstep.blogspot.com/
2 comments:
Hey there! Thanks for raising awareness about preparedness.
It's great to know that Warrenton S.T.E.P. has a blog! We'll definitely write about it on our blog (www.oregonredcross.org/blog) .
FYI, we've got a free PDF booklet with info on how to prepare for multiple Oregon disasters here: www.oregonredcross.org/TWPO
And also, if people want to shop locally for disaster kit items we have a bunch of great things at www.oregonredcross.org/store .
If you ever have more preparedness info from your neck of Oregon feel free to pass it on to us so we can help get the word out.
Thanks again,
Robin
Communications Specialist & Blog Master
American Red Cross Oregon Trail Chapter
Wow! Thank you for the additional resource information. I have a lot of respect for the Red Cross--I think they do a lot more than the general public sees.
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