Preparedness Potpourri

This is a tactic any of my old editors would use when they had to write a column but only had snippets of info to work with, not full-blown ideas. They would write several disjointed paragraphs that had next to nothing to do with each other, then call it something witty like “Random Thoughts” or “Deep Musings.”

(Maybe “witty” is more appropriate.)

Such titles were supposed to suggest hours of deep thought and intense navel-gazing.

In the words of my once-teenage kids, “Whatever.”

There’s no business like snow business…. Apparently, those “Think Snow” bumper stickers really work. Communities in the higher elevations of Arizona – notably Flagstaff, Show Low, the White Mountains, and pretty much the whole Mogollon Rim – are getting their fill of the white stuff. No sooner did the Wing Mountain snow play area near Flagstaff close due to dwindling snow inventory than Mother Nature went and replenished stock. Nice, if you’re into that type of thing. As for me, there’s a saying: “You don’t have to shovel sunshine.”

If there’s a moral or a point, it’s this: Be prepared for winter.

Do you hear what I hear? Did you enjoy your holidays? I had the whole family over to my house for Thanksgiving and whupped up a holiday dinner, replete with homemade gravy, ham and turkey. Good thing I had the foresight to make ham because the turkey was undercooked. Like pink juice squirting out of the leg joint undercooked. I said, “Eww.” Well, maybe I said something stronger. And louder. Maybe that’s why my sister all but yelped when the topic of hosting Christmas dinner came up. I don’t know why she was so antsy; I planned to smoke a pork butt roast.

If there’s a moral or a point, it’s this: Try not to poison your relatives. They take that kind of thing pretty personally.

It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt. Face it: You like playing games. Maybe you play them at work. Maybe you play them while flying. You’re a regular player-participator, you are.

Then why haven’t you played this game?

No Need to Answer in the Form of a Question

Last week I got to talking with office-mate PIO Greg about his native Flagstaff. I, myself, am from Pennsylvania. Lancaster County, Pa., to be exact. So, it stands to good reason that I do not know too much – really anything – about the local history or legend of Flagstaff.

Ultimately, our conversation evolved (or maybe deteriorated) into a flippant contest of wits. The sort of thing you do to test someone’s supposed genius on a subject. Despite throwing my best Wikipedia-inspired questions at him, Greg proved himself a true Flagstaff-ian … or is it Flagstaff-an? Whatever it is, the point is that Greg gets to keep his Flagstaff membership card.

In the same spirit of fun and self-edification, I thought I’d pose the readers of this blog – all five or you –a similar challenge. I want to know what you know about emergency preparedness … about what it means to be ready for the effects of and recovery from an emergency or disaster.

So let’s get down to it. Below are six (10) questions taken from the wellspring of information that is www.justincasearizona.com. The questions are divided equally into three (3) categories based on their subject.

Without further a due, let’s get started.

Prepare a Plan
1. A friend or relative who lives somewhere other than Arizona is be a good candidate for an emergency ______ contact. You should “check in” with this person if you are separated from your family during an emergency or disaster.
2. It’s important to plan and practice _______ routes in case you need to get out of the house in a hurry.
3. In an emergency or disaster it’s important to identify a place where family can reunite. How many reunion places should you identify and where should they be?

Make a Kit
4. An emergency kit should include enough food, water and supplies to last a minimum of how long? (You can answer in days or hours)
5. Pack a _____ in case you get separated from your pet and need to describe his/her appearance.
6. Potable (drinkable) water is an important part of a kit. As a general rule, pack ___ gallon(s)/per ___/per ___.

Be Informed
7. What website is “the state’s online source for real-time emergency updates, preparedness information and multimedia resources?” (This one's a softball!)
8. A flood warning means flooding is occurring or will soon occur (True/False)
9. If you are in a moving vehicle when a dust storm hits, the driver should take three (3) steps. List them.
10. One (1) foot of water is enough to float most vehicles (True/False)

BONUS (+2): In 75 words or less tell us what emergency preparedness means to you and your family.

Answers can be emailed to azein@azdema.gov. We’ll wait a week or two before combing through the answers. Depending on the level of participation, maybe we can make this a monthly thing. I’ll even see if I can’t wrangle up some prizes should we see some enthusiasm.

Oh, and if you’ve got some good trivia questions of your own, shoot them are way. See if you can stump the AzEIN PIOs ... we "Triple-Dog Dare" 'ya!

Resolve to be Ready

It is that time of year again. While you might be thinking holiday activities and the merriment, I am thinking about New Year’s resolutions.

I am a bit of a list junkie. I have a list of projects at work, a list of things I want to buy, a list of projects around the house, a list of fun activities to do. New Year’s resolutions fall right in with the other lists.

A couple weeks ago, I started thinking about my next year’s resolutions. The top of the list is generally lose weight and exercise more. . . . then I received an email about FEMA’s “Resolve to be Ready” campaign. What a great way to capitalize on all of us list makers!

Working in emergency management, I am constantly exposed to what it takes to be ready for the unexpected; make a plan, build a kit and stay informed. Adding preparedness to my resolutions should be a slam dunk.

I would give myself about an 85% in my level of preparedness. There are a few things that I can easily complete to bring me closer to 100%:

1) Update my communications plan (yes, I have one, but in doesn’t reflect the changes in work numbers or some of my new doctors).
2) Add current rabies vaccination information and information about new veterinarian (I have got to watch out for my dogs).
3) Add work gloves back to my kit (they got repurposed to gardening gloves when I put in a winter lawn).

I might be taking an easy way out . . . choosing a resolution that I am already 85% there. But hey, maybe that will give me the momentum to do as well on my other resolutions.

And it doesn’t hurt to be ready.

A Little Gift from Us to You

One of the glories of Twitter is you never seem more than a few minutes removed from news as it happens.

One of its downfalls is sometimes you never seem removed from it at all.

Occasionally I shut off my TweetDeck, with its parade of pop-up windows accompanied by sonar pings, and give that one connection to the outside world a few hours of down time. This is particularly handy when the news of the day is, shall we say, a bit fluffy.

Today, though, it was impossible to ignore the steady stream of tweets about bad things happening on Arizona highways: A multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 10 south of Phoenix, possibly caused by blowing dust, resulting in fatalities; another collision on Interstate 40 near Williams in snowy, white-out conditions; warnings of severe winds between Phoenix and California, also on I-10.

The info was flying so fast, some folks – including me – were confusing old events for new ones, the classic newsroom pitfall when emergencies seem to surface in staccato bursts.

While this highway melee has less impact on me personally since I won’t be traveling on I-10 today, nor attempting to drive in snow this Christmas, it still leaves me a bit apprehensive. It’s also hard for me to grasp and process the personal tragedies that these accidents beget during what is supposed to be the “most wonderful time of the year.”

How easy is it for me to repeat our mantra to be vigilant, be prepared, have a plan?

How easy could it have been me or one of my kids in one of those accidents?

How easy is it to enjoy the weather without being harmed in it?

It can start with this little gift: Remember how to drive safely in bad conditions, and check out the always-popular winter driving safety primer.

The rest depends on you. And me. It should be so easy.

Showers With a Chance for Preparedness

Last Monday (Dec. 7) it stormed something awful at my house. Not surprising, the same system that barreled through my neighborhood with thunder and lightning and fierce winds also dumped significant snow at higher elevations. More than likely, you saw some weather outside your place.

I woke the next morning to a backyard scattered with debris and a tattered bougainvillea bush (see photo). In retrospect, the shrub was of little consequence compared to damage (e.g., toppled mature trees) done to homes down the block.

When you consider what might have been, what was didn't seem so bad. The bottom line is that you can't control which way or with what intensity the wind blows. All you can do is know and respect the local hazards and prepare for them.

In some areas knowing the hazards is easy. You only have to look outside or take a lap around the neighborhood. And once you identify a hazard, you need to prepare.

For example, if you live near a wash or riverbed then worry over flash flooding is justified and reason enough to make a family evacuation plan, to learn to turn off the gas and power, and to store important papers and keepsakes in a high, overhead cabinet.

If you own a home in the mountains or in an area dense with trees then wildfires would be an appropriate incident to mitigate against. You do this by clearing defensible space around your house, clearing clogged gutters of debris and landscaping with native plants that require little water.

If you live in Northern Arizona or at higher elevations then blizzards, ice storms and extreme winter cold would give cause to pack a family emergency kit complete with considerations for the cold like blankets, jackets, hats and gloves.

Ultimately, the point is ready yourself, your family and your home for any and all hazards. The basics of comprehensive preparedness are easy to remember, simple to follow and never change.

Prepare a Plan - write and rehearse family communication and preparedness plans that identify a family meeting place and include local emergency numbers and an "out-of-town" contact.

Make a Kit - gather enough food, water and provisions for 72 hours. Suggested items include first aid supplies, non-perishable food, drinking water, a flashlight and a radio.

Be Informed - learn about hazards in your community by listening to and/or watching local news. You can also contact your local emergency management office to learn about readiness planning and preparations.