8/22/16 – September is National Preparedness Month

Thanks to Diana LaRusso and her SSA Emergency Management Team, FaCT will not be following Dilbert’s lead in developing a disaster recovery plan. Their excellent Disaster Preparedness training with our network this month not only raised our awareness of the possibility that a disaster could strike at any time, but provided us with useful information and critical tools to prepare and respond if it happens. Since not all of our resource center partners could attend the training, we thought it would be beneficial to share some disaster preparation materials that can be accessed on-line. While this cannot take the place of an in-person training, they can be useful tools and remind us that:

“When disaster strikes, the time to prepare has passed.” — Steven Cyros

All across our country, people will take action to become more aware of their hazards and risks. Once you know what you might be facing, you can better prepare. In Orange County, we have three main natural disasters: wildfire, flood, and earthquake. You can find general preparedness information for each of these hazards at: community.fema.gov

Certain preparedness steps apply to all emergency situations. Plan how you will reconnect with your family after a disaster! For easy first steps in family preparedness, click here. You will find Family Communication Plan templates here. As the summer months come to a close we transition into a new school year. If you have children or grandchildren in school, be sure to engage with teachers and administrators and request information about their emergency policies. If they don’t already, encourage them to require all students to bring in emergency supplies the school can have on hand. Know the school’s plans for sheltering in place, evacuations, communication, etc. How will you be reunited with your child if an emergency occurs during the school day?

PEDESTRIAN SAFETY TIPS:

• Talk to your kids about how to be safe while walking. It’s always best to walk on sidewalks or paths and cross at street corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible.
• Teach kids at an early age to put down their devices and then look left, right and left again when crossing the street.
• Remind kids to make eye contact with drivers before crossing the street and to watch out for cars that are turning or backing up. NEVER run or dart out into the street or cross between parked cars!
• Set a good example by putting devices down when you are driving or walking around cars. If we put our devices down, our kids are more likely to do the same.
• Children under 10 should cross the street with an adult. Every child is different, but developmentally, it can be hard for kids to judge speed and distance of cars until age 10.

DRIVE WITH EXTRA CAUTION!

• When driving, be especially alert in residential neighborhoods and school zones and be on the lookout for bikers, walkers or runners who may be distracted or may step into the street unexpectedly.
• Give pedestrians the right of way and look both ways when making a turn to help spot any bikers, walkers or runners who may not be immediately visible. Always follow the direction of crossing