The devastation Hawaii is experiencing due to wildfire is heart-wrenching to see and a sobering reminder to take stock in our own preparedness in the event of such a catastrophe closer to home.
Local emergency response personnel plan, train and equip for disasters, but those efforts are only one side of a preparedness partnership. During major incidents, first responders can be overwhelmed; there simply are not enough resources initially available to help all who need it. For this reason, it is critical for the other side of that partnership – the public – to take responsibility for preparing for the consequences of the hazards we face.
If you are at home reading this, do you have essential supplies and important documents ready to go so you could immediately walk out the door? Would you pause to take a video of an approaching firestorm or take immediate positive steps to secure the safety of yourself, your family and your neighbors? Do you have a list of what those steps would be? Do you know where you and any of your pets and livestock would go? If you are at work, do you know how to contact your family and where you would meet if your phone suddenly stopped working? If you are separated from children, grandparents, or other loved ones who may have access or functional needs, do they know who might be able to help them, what they should do, and where they should go? Finally, how would you get emergency information to make sound decisions, and what would you do if those sources were not available?
