Welcome back! Last week, we talked about Fentanyl. If you missed that blog and would like to catch up, click HERE.
This week, I wanted to talk to you about emergency preparedness. I know…you think you’ve heard it all, but maybe not. Let’s get to it…
I’ve been hearing about “The Big One” my whole life
I know. Me too. It’s very easy to become complacent. Let’s remember that emergency preparedness isn’t just about earthquakes. A couple of years ago, Oregon was hit with unprecedented wildfires. Then after that, it was an ice storm that isolated all of us for 10 days.
As you read this blog, try to remember those events, and remind yourself that this could really happen, and if it does, we are on our own. Nobody is coming to save you.
What do you mean when you say nobody is coming to save me?
Just that. Let’s look at Hurricane Sandy for comparison. My friends were without electricity, food, gas, and more for over a month. They had to walk on foot to find help and hope that they ran into the Red Cross. I was advocating for them from Oregon, and when I finally got in touch with their emergency management, he yelled, “LADY, we can’t even help OURSELVES right now! They’re on their own!!!” and hung up. No ambulances. No heat. Eventually no food. Looting. No gas for their generator. It was apocalyptic. My friend planted himself in front of the door (in several inches of water), and when looters banged on the door, he would yell, “I’m armed!” to convince them to leave.
It happened in New York, and it can happen here. If we have a serious earthquake, it will impact all of us, including emergency management. Freeways will pancake, and towns like my own will have all the surrounding bridges collapse resulting in them becoming islands unto their own. Schools, nursing homes, hospitals, fire stations, and police departments can all potentially collapse.
NOBODY IS COMING. Those who can still serve will be overwhelmed.
Now that I have your attention…
The Whittier Narrows earthquake in 1987 underscored the area-wide threat of a major disaster in California. In the aftermath, civilians came out to help other civilians with search and rescue, among other services. In doing so, many more people became victims, because they weren’t trained to do what they were doing. This confirmed the need for training civilians to meet their immediate needs. FEMA decided if people are instinctually going to help, regardless of training, then they best be training them to avoid further chaos.
CERT became a national program in 1993
This led to the creation of CERT – Community Emergency Response Teams. In some cities, they are called NERT – Neighborhood Emergency Response Teams.
I am FEMA trained in disaster preparedness through my local fire department. It’s a great program.
Their purpose is to train average people to respond SAFELY to a disaster. Through their local fire department, they learn about safe search and rescue techniques, how to perform medical interventions, how to turn off gas at the curb, suppress small fires, disaster psychology, “go” bags, and more.
The main idea of CERT is to teach folks how to secure their own home first, then their neighbors home, then spread out from there, building a communication network that then delivers messages back to the First Responders at the Fire Department and Police Station so they know where the greatest needs are and who needs the most help. More importantly, it frees them up to take care of the things civilians can not handle, like large warehouse fires, clearing a school, and more.
I feel like I need that training
Check with your local fire department to see if there is CERT training available.
For now, I’ll share some things that I know to be helpful
Step one: Secure your own home.
This is a step that is taken AHEAD of the disaster. When the earth starts to move, normal everyday objects can become dangerous projectiles. Walk through your home on a “hazard hunt”, identifying anything that could pose a hazard. Install latches on cabinets containing dishes, secure heavy bookcases to walls using straps or bolts, and use closed hooks or earthquake putty to affix pictures and mirrors to walls so they don’t come crashing down.
It’s also important to make sure your appliances, especially the ones that use gas, are held tightly in place. Earthquake straps, available at almost all hardware stores, around hot water heaters and other appliances could save you from a dangerous gas leak. Flexible gas lines, as opposed to standard rigid pipes which can snap in an earthquake, can also spell the difference between a home you need to evacuate immediately and one that you can take shelter in.
Step two: Consider a retrofit if your building was built before 1990
Most newer buildings are built to withstand moderate quakes, but if you live or work in an older structure, built before the 1990s, it is worth your time and money to invest in a retrofit assessment. For homeowners, having an engineer take a look at your foundation may seem like an invitation to costly construction, but shelling out a bit of money now could help you avoid the cost of a complete rebuild later.
Step three: Put together a safety plan
This is a little more complicated than simply having a pre-agreed-upon place to meet up.
The first thing you want to do is make sure there is a plan in place for the entire family. You’ve seen men run into a burning house to save the dog, right? Imagine if it were your child or grandchild. People will risk their lives to save others, so it’s best to have a good plan in place to avoid the need to go back inside.
If you get an alert on your phone that a disaster is imminent, you may have time to get to a place outside, away from falling buildings, power lines, and trees. In this case, the family should all exit the building independently of each other if able.
If there are small children or animals that need to be taken along the way, then plan that whoever is closest to that child or animal grabs them and takes them along to safety.
Practice escaping at least once every three months. Put together different scenarios to challenge the children to make good decisions, for example, “There’s an out-of-control fire in the kitchen, and the back door isn’t an option. Now what do you do?” You would be surprised how many children think finding their shoes first before leaving the building or grabbing their favorite stuffy or blankie is more important than going straight to safety.
The time to practice is now, as you don’t practice for a crisis in the middle of a crisis.
If you don’t get a heads-up that there is going to be an imminent event, then you have to go to plan B.
Step three, plan B
Most injuries from earthquakes occur when people are running to try and get somewhere safe. The safest thing you can do is drop to the ground, cover your head and neck, and hold on to something sturdy. If there is a solid piece of furniture near you, try to get under it. Do your best to stay away from windows, outside doors and walls, or anything that could fall, like light fixtures or furniture.
If you can’t fit under something sturdy, then get as close to it as possible, so it takes the blow should something fall.
Step four: How will you communicate?
One of the major hurdles after a natural disaster can be communication. Phone lines are often jammed or out of commission altogether, but there are some steps you can take ahead of time to make getting in touch easier.
Experts recommend keeping a list of emergency contacts in your cell phone and having a stash of extra batteries or solar chargers on hand. If you don’t have a cell phone, it’s a good idea to invest in a prepaid calling card. For mass communication, a battery-operated or hand-crank radio can help you gain access to important emergency information.
Step five: Out-of-state contact
I can’t stress this enough. If you do nothing else, choose an out-of-state person to be the point person for your friends and family.
Why? Because during a disaster, the powers that be will often turn off the phones to give the emergency responders more bandwidth. You might be able to text, but you very likely won’t be able to call anyone in the state you live in. You will, however, be able to call out of state.
You don’t want to be in a position of not knowing if your loved ones are ok. It can drive you to take risks you otherwise wouldn’t take in order to find them. If you have an out-of-state contact, everyone you love should have that number in their cell phone. As soon as they are able, they should call that person to check-in.
This way, the point person can keep track of all the different people in your circle. When you call, and you hear that your parents just checked in and they are bruised but ok, or your husband just checked in and he’s safe, but trapped in his work building, then at least you know what’s going on, and who needs help or doesn’t need help. You will also know who hasn’t checked in and decide how best to approach that.
Step six: Put together a survival bag
When packing an earthquake survival kit, you should plan to be self-sufficient for as long as a week with everything you need to get by.
At a minimum, your kit should include water (a gallon per person/per day, and don’t forget pets), canned food with pull tabs that are high in calories (think pork and beans), a portable or hand-cranked radio with extra batteries, warm clothing, an emergency blanket, copies of vital documents, medications, food for pets and cash, preferably in small bills. Don’t just go to the ATM and put several $ 20s in your bag, because chances are that the stores won’t have the ability to make change. Nobody wants to pay $20 for a pack of batteries or a brick of water bottles.
For a complete list of what to include in your home kit, as well as kits for work and cars, check out page 17 of the Oregon Office of Emergency Management’s “Living on Shaky Ground” magazine.
Step seven: Where do I put my survival supplies?
Almost as important as what you put in your survival kit is where you store it. It won’t make any difference if you have a survival bag if you can’t get to it. This can be especially important if you live in a tsunami zone where you may need to get to higher ground quickly.
We have go bags strategically placed around our home and in our car. We keep one at work. Keeping a backpack in your vehicle can save your life if your car can no longer travel on a wrecked highway and you have to get out and walk. If you wear heels or flip-flops, keep a pair of tennis shoes/socks in your car bag.
Now that you’re prepared
Once you’ve accomplished all of the above, you can then look for places to get more training. CERT is an excellent source for this. You will be assigned a neighborhood team and together, you and your neighbors can prepare for an event by putting together a list of what everyone has available, such as extra generators they would be willing to share, or even something as simple as a tool to turn the gas off should there be a leak. When the bad thing happens, it’s going to be neighbors helping neighbors until things settle down and a sense of normalcy comes back into focus.
The best thing?
Once you are prepared, you can relax. You don’t have to think about it anymore. You know you’ve done your best, you acknowledge that there’s no such thing as “perfect safety”, and you live your life. At that point, what will be, will be.
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As always, this blog is not a replacement for sound medical advice. I am not a doctor. Please make an appointment to see your healthcare provider and put a good plan in place that works for you and the needs of your body.
That’s all I have for you this week, dear reader. I’ll see you back here next Wednesday to share another cup of coffee. Until then, be good to yourself and each other.
Mind, Body, Spirit…Osteopathic Doctors treat the whole person, not just the ailment. Is your PCP a DO? Would you like to learn more about Osteopathic Physicians? Click HERE!