Being Prepared
by Dan Nelson
As residents of the Kenai Peninsula, we know that disasters can happen at any time. September is National Preparedness Month, and it is a good time to prepare yourself and those in your care for emergencies and disasters. In just the past week we have seen disasters in Colorado as the result of flooding, which we saw locally here last fall. Combine that with volcanoes, earthquakes, and winter weather and we have a high likelihood of experiencing emergencies here on the Kenai.
Communities like Seldovia that are off the road system have additional considerations because of the logistics of receiving supplies and a smaller resource pool of responders to draw from. Police, fire and rescue may not always be able to reach you quickly in an emergency or disaster. The most important step you can take in helping your local responders is being able to take care of yourself and those in your care; the more people who are prepared, the quicker the community will recover.
Borough Mayor Mike Navarre recently proclaimed September as Disaster Preparedness Month on the Kenai Peninsula. We would encourage everyone totake time this month to look over their supplies and plan to be self-sufficient for at least seven days without the ability to get new supplies and to go without utilities such as electricity and water. There are four steps to follow to help yourself be better prepared:
Stay Informed: Information is available from federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial resources.
You can visit www.ready.gov for information or access the KPB Office of Emergency Management site atwww.borough.kenai.ak.us/
Make a Plan: Discuss, agree on, and document an emergency plan with those in your care.
Work together with neighbors, colleagues, and others to build community resilience.
Build a Kit: Keep enough emergency supplies – water, nonperishable food, first aid, prescriptions, flashlight, and battery-powered radio on hand – for you and those in your care. Supply lists are available to help get a kit started.
Get Involved: There are many ways to get involved especially before a disaster occurs. The whole community can participate in programs and activities to make their families, homes and places of worship safer from risks and threats. The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a training program that helps community members learn skills to help themselves and their communities in the event of a disaster. We do intend to present a CERT training in Seldovia this winter; please watch for announcements for specific dates.
By taking a few simple actions, you can make your family and community safer. Please see the links below for additional information and templates for some of the suggestions we have discussed here. For additional information or assistance with emergency preparedness, please don’t hesitate to contact Dan Nelson at the Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management at dnelson@borough.kenai.ak.us or (800) 478-4441 ext. 2098.
General preparedness information: www.ready.gov
KPB Emergency Management: www.borough.kenai.ak.us/
Kenai Peninsula CERT program: www.kpvolunteers.org
Build a 7-day kit in 24 weeks: http://ready.alaska.gov/
Dan Nelson
Citizen Corps Program Coordinator
KPB IC-III Planning Section Chief
Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management
(907) 262-2098 * (907) 714-2395 FAX
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