Race the Wave 5K fun run/walk to practice tsunami evacuation routes.

Cannon Beach, OR – September is National Preparedness Month and Pacific Northwest coastal communities are leading by example. Cannon Beach, Oregon will host Race the Wave, their first hazard-themed fun run designed to blend awareness and action into a single activity.

Race the Wave is a 5k tsunami fun run/walk that follows an actual tsunami evacuation route in Cannon Beach.  On September 28, participants will learn about earthquake and tsunami hazards so they can make informed decisions and take actions to be better prepared, creating a more resilient community. The race route begins on the beach and finishes at the higher ground of one of the community’s evacuation meeting points, where Cannon Beach will host a preparedness fair with interactive booths for all to learn more about how to prepare for emergencies and disasters.

Cannon Beach, OR is a community long committed to ensuring its citizens and visitors are prepared for a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami. Race the Wave uses the National Preparedness month themes of being disaster aware and taking action to prepare and makes those themes relevant for their community.

• Know the Plan: Make a plan with your family about where you will meet. Know if you need to pick your kids up from school. Know where you need to go and what to bring with you.
• Take the Route: Become familiar with signage in your area. Learn the evacuation route from where you live, work, and play. Evacuate on foot and avoid traveling by car if possible.
• Race the Wave: Natural warnings are the best sign of a tsunami. If you feel the ground shaking, move quickly inland or to a higher elevation. Listen to the radio to learn of tsunami warnings originating from non-local causes.

The Community of Cannon Beach, Clatsop County Office of Emergency Management, Oregon Office of Emergency Management, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI), Oregon Office on Disability & Health at Oregon Health & Science University and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region X office are coming together to support Race the Wave.

FEMA is encouraging everyone to take steps to become better prepared for an emergency. Whether it’s at home, at work, at school, or in the community, there’s a lot that you can do to be ready and help others be ready too.  This September, take time to get disaster prepared and take action to prepare.

For more information and to participate in Race the Wave visit the community Facebook page. 

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at twitter.com/femaregion10, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at twitter.com/craigatfema The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications

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