You Too Can Be a Hero!!

Imagine waking to the ground shaking.  Things falling and breaking, entire buildings swaying if not falling.  Cracks opening up in roadways, bridges falling, power lines down, water lines rupturing.  It's a scene out of many disaster movies.

We have all seen scenes like this play out in movies time and time again, In fact there is a new movie coming out in May that will highlight a major disaster in this country and highlight how one hero will be shown to be the saving grace for many.   Hollywood likes to focus on one action hero saving many, but in reality, many true hero's that will likely arise is a situation like this. Everyday people who will come together and work as a team to help each other out until other help arrives!!

I think the majority of people understand that when and if something bad happens where you live, there never will be enough, firefighters, law enforcement officers, utility workers, road crews, nurses, and the list goes on.

It's easy to stick our heads in the sand and pretend something bad wont happen, but the reality is, it could happen anytime.  Understanding the risk, just as in any risk is important in the choices we make.  Personally I prefer being part of the solution, not the problem.

Surviving a major disaster will take everyone coming together and working together to responding as a neighborhood, and community to ensure those who need help the most get it along with getting us back on our feet.

I recently completed CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Training.  The basic skills I learned from preparedness, to basic first aid, fire suppression and search and rescue techniques can really come in handy, not only when the bad thing happens but in how I look at everyday situations

Our next class is coming up in April.  Do you have what it takes to help be part of the solution and be a true hero when emergencies happen?  For More information on CERT, please see  www.fema.gov/community-emergency-response-teams.

See pictures from the last CERT class on our Flickr Page  

An Opportunity to Participate in Whole Community



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Over the last couple of years, there is a new catch-phrase in the emergency management world called "Whole Community." 

"Whole Community" refers to the understanding that we are all in this world together and must work to help each other, identify key concerns and work creatively to solve large scale problems.

While local emergency management programs have always encouraged the neighbor-helping-neighbor philosophy through programs like CERT, Neighbors on Watch and Map Your Neighborhood programs, the federal government is joining in the effort to collect feedback in how national philosophies and messages are shaped around community preparedness.

To that end, a series of webinars will be held in February which aim to engage private and non-profit sectors in developing the National Planning Frameworks which are due to the President on June 30, 2012. 

There will be webinars held on February 8 & 15th as well as March 7, 12 and 19th, 2012.  They will last 2 hours each and will hold 100 participants on a first-come, first-served basis.  If you are interested in participating, please email ppd8-engagement@fema.dhs.gov for more information.