Take Action and Be Disaster Ready: National PrepareAthon! Day

CHICAGO –Join National PrepareAthon! Day on September 30 and take action to improve your emergency preparedness and resilience to disasters.  America’s PrepareAthon! is a grassroots campaign developed to encourage individuals, organizations and communities to prepare for specific hazards through drills, group discussions and exercises.

“It’s important to be proactive about emergency preparedness so you know what to do if disaster strikes,” said FEMA Region V Administrator Andrew Velasquez III. “Engage your family, friends and neighbors to identify the risks in your community and understand what to do to stay safe.”

  • Sign up for local alerts and warnings and check for access to wireless emergency alerts. Visit the websites for your city and/or county to find out if they offer emergency alert notifications. You should also ensure your cell phone is enabled to receive Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) to warn you of extreme weather and other emergencies in your area. Remember, warning sirens are intended for outdoor notification. When indoors, your alert-enabled smart phone or weather radio can provide you with critical alerts.

  • Develop and test emergency communications plans. Visit www.Ready.gov/plan-for-your-risks for tips on how to ensure your plan is as comprehensive as possible.

  • Assemble or update emergency supplies. Include drinking water, a first-aid kit, canned food, a radio, flashlight and blankets. Visit www.Ready.gov/build-a-kit for a disaster supply checklist. Don’t forget to store additional supply kits in your car and at the office.

  • Collect and safeguard critical documents. Make copies of important documents (mortgage papers, deed, passport, bank information, etc.). Keep copies in your home and store originals in a secure place outside the home, such as a bank safe deposit box.

  • Document property and obtain appropriate insurance for relevant hazards. Discuss with your insurance agent the risks that may threaten your home and the types of coverage you may need to ensure your property is adequately insured.

  • Download the FEMA app to your smartphone. You’ll receive alerts from the National Weather Service for up to five locations across the U.S. and have access to information about how to stay safe.

More information about the ways to register for and participate in America’s PrepareAthon! Day is available at www.Ready.gov/prepare. For even more readiness information, follow FEMA Region V at twitter.com/femaregion5 and facebook.com/fema.

Follow FEMA online at twitter.com/femaregion5, 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.

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.

 

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Media Contact: Cassie Ringsdorf, 312-408-4455

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Take Action and Be Disaster Ready: National PrepareAthon! Day

America’s PrepareAthon! National Day of Action Set for Thursday

DENVER – Thursday, April 30, is America’s PrepareAthon! National Day of Action, a grassroots campaign for action to get families, organizations and whole communities better prepared for emergencies. The campaign offers easy-to-use preparedness guides, checklists, and resources to help individuals prepare for common natural hazards and to take action, including downloading alerts and warnings, holding a drill, or safeguarding critical documents.

Despite the devastation that tornadoes, wildfires, and other natural disasters have caused in recent years, nearly 60 percent of surveyed Americans have not participated in a preparedness drill or exercise at their workplace, school, or home in the past year. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Denver-based regional office joins the states of Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming in encouraging the whole community to participate in the America’s PrepareAthon! campaign by performing one of these simple preparedness actions:

  1. Sign up for local text alerts and warnings and download weather apps to your smartphone.
    Stay aware of worsening weather conditions. Visit ready.gov/prepare and download Be Smart: Know Your Alerts and Warnings to learn how to search for local alerts and weather apps relevant for hazards that affect your area.
  2. Gather important documents and keep them in a safe place.
    Have all of your personal, medical, and legal papers in one place, so you can evacuate without worrying about gathering your family’s critical documents at the last minute. Visit ready.gov/prepare and download Be Smart: Protect Your Critical Documents and Valuables for a helpful checklist.
  3. Create an emergency supply kit.
    Bad weather can become dangerous very quickly. Be prepared by creating an emergency supply kit for each member of your family. Visit ready.gov/kit for information on what to include in your kit.
  4. Develop an emergency communication plan for your family.
    It’s possible that your family will be in different locations when a disaster strikes. Come up with a plan so everyone knows how to reach each other and get back together if separated. Visit ready.gov/make-a-plan for communication plan resources.

Every state in FEMA Region VIII has shown support for America’s PrepareAthon! this spring by aligning a variety of preparedness activities with the campaign. The National Weather Service in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming held statewide tornado drills to prepare residents for severe spring and summer weather; nearly one million Utahns participated in earthquake drills during the Great Utah ShakeOut; and communities throughout Colorado and Montana will hold wildfire preparedness events on May 2 for Wildfire Community Preparedness Day, an America’s PrepareAthon! partner event.

For more information about America’s PrepareAthon!, visit ready.gov/prepare. Follow America’s PrepareAthon! on Twitter using the handle @Prepareathon and #PrepareAthon.

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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 us on twitter @femaregion8.

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America’s PrepareAthon! National Day of Action Set for Thursday

60% of Americans Not Practicing for Disaster: FEMA urges everyone to prepare by participating in National PrepareAthon! Day on April 30

WASHINGTON – A recent Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) survey found that nearly 60 percent of American adults have not practiced what to do in a disaster by participating in a disaster drill or preparedness exercise at work, school, or home in the past year. Further, only 39 percent of respondents have developed an emergency plan and discussed it with their household. This is despite the fact that 80 percent of Americans live in counties that have been hit with a weather-related disaster since 2007, as reported by the Washington Post. With the number and severity of weather-related disasters on the rise, the America’s PrepareAthon! is an opportunity for individuals, organizations, and communities to take action to prepare for specific hazards through group discussions, drills, and exercises.

“When it comes to preparedness, practice makes perfect,” said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate. “America’s PrepareAthon! is about taking action now to better prepare yourself, your family, and your community to be ready to respond to these events before they occur.”

America’s PrepareAthon! is a national community-based campaign that provides free, easy-to-use guides, checklists, and resources to get more people to take action to prepare every day. On April 30, individuals, families, workplaces, schools and organizations will come together to practice simple actions to stay safe before, during, and after emergencies relevant to their area. Examples include:

  1. Sign up for local text alerts and warnings and download weather apps to your smartphone.
  2. Develop an emergency communication plan for your family. This will help you be in touch if a disaster strikes and family members are in different locations.
  3. Collect important documents and keep them in a safe place. This will help you evacuate without delay and get back on track after the disaster passes.
  4. Gather emergency supplies. Pack a “go bag” to evacuate quickly and have supplies in the home to be safe without water or power.

Visit the America’s PrepareAthon! website, ready.gov/prepare to take action, be counted and spread the word.

America’s PrepareAthon! was established to provide a comprehensive campaign to build and sustain national preparedness as directed by Presidential Policy Directive-8. The campaign is coordinated by FEMA in collaboration with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations.

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60% of Americans Not Practicing for Disaster: FEMA urges everyone to prepare by participating in National PrepareAthon! Day on April 30

Sixty Percent of Americans Not Practicing for Disaster: FEMA urges everyone to prepare by participating in National PrepareAthon! Day on April 30

WASHINGTON – A recent Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) survey found that nearly 60 percent of American adults have not practiced what to do in a disaster by participating in a disaster drill or preparedness exercise at work, school, or home in the past year. Further, only 39 percent of respondents have developed an emergency plan and discussed it with their household. This is despite the fact that 80 percent of Americans live in counties that have been hit with a weather-related disaster since 2007, as reported by the Washington Post. With the number and severity of weather-related disasters on the rise, the America’s PrepareAthon! is an opportunity for individuals, organizations, and communities to take action to prepare for specific hazards through group discussions, drills, and exercises.

“When it comes to preparedness, practice makes perfect,” said FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate. “America’s PrepareAthon! is about taking action now to better prepare yourself, your family, and your community to be ready to respond to these events before they occur.”

America’s PrepareAthon! is a national community-based campaign that provides free, easy-to-use guides, checklists, and resources to get more people to take action to prepare every day. On April 30, individuals, families, workplaces, schools and organizations will come together to practice simple actions to stay safe before, during, and after emergencies relevant to their area. Examples include:

  1. Sign up for local text alerts and warnings and download weather apps to your smartphone.
  2. Develop an emergency communication plan for your family. This will help you be in touch if a disaster strikes and family members are in different locations.
  3. Collect important documents and keep them in a safe place. This will help you evacuate without delay and get back on track after the disaster passes.
  4. Gather emergency supplies. Pack a “go bag” to evacuate quickly and have supplies in the home to be safe without water or power.

Visit the America’s PrepareAthon! website, ready.gov/prepare to take action, be counted and spread the word.

America’s PrepareAthon! was established to provide a comprehensive campaign to build and sustain national preparedness as directed by Presidential Policy Directive-8. The campaign is coordinated by FEMA in collaboration with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial governments, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations.

Source: 

Sixty Percent of Americans Not Practicing for Disaster: FEMA urges everyone to prepare by participating in National PrepareAthon! Day on April 30

Changing Weather in the Northeast Calls for Greater Local Preparation

FEMA and Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management Improve Community Disaster Resiliency through America’s PrepareAthon!

New York, NY – New York and New Jersey have seen their share of weather disasters in recent years. Based on recent experience and on current assessments of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the region is likely to endure continuing shifts in weather patterns, prompting a need for emergency management expertise, as well as community preparedness for severe weather.

According to a 2012 national survey on preparedness by FEMA, a mere 39 percent of Americans reported having a household emergency plan, and almost 50 percent did not have supplies set aside in their homes for use in a disaster.

Playing a pivotal role in disaster preparedness is the new Manhattan-based Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management, the first high school in the United States devoted exclusively to emergency management.  This Wednesday, April 30, 120 of its students will interview some 1500 residents across New York City’s five boroughs about their families’ preparedness. Survey results will be used to determine how prepared the general public is post-Super Storm Sandy, and if preparedness levels differ in flood prone areas. The survey’s results will be made public on the school’s website.

The students will be joined by Jerome Hatfield, Regional Administrator of FEMA at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal in lower Manhattan at 10:30 am this Wednesday. This event is being held in coordination with the NYC Office of Emergency Management.  Mr. Hatfield will be available for interviews on the role of the new emergency management school and the need for preparedness, as well as the evolving weather climate in FEMA’s Region II, which includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

The joint effort by FEMA and the Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management to interview and inform the public about emergency preparedness constitute one of many events occurring across the country as part of America’s PrepareAthon!, a national community day of action encouraging millions of individuals, organizations, and communities to take action to improve their levels of disaster preparedness.   

About America’s PrepareAthon!

America’s PrepareAthon! provides a national focus for millions of individuals, organizations, and communities to take action to improve their level of preparedness.  Twice a year—in the spring and fall—individuals, communities, and organizations across the country will organize days of action to discuss, practice, and train for relevant hazards. 

Follow the discussion on Twitter by following @PrepareAthon or #PrepareAthon. For more information, go to www.ready.gov/prepare.

About Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management

The Urban Assembly School for Emergency Management (UASEM) is a public Career and Technical Education high school that prepares students to engage in complex quantitative and qualitative reasoning skills with an understanding of the principles of Emergency Management. Visit www.uasem.org to learn more.

http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4086/updates/sandy-one-year-later

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 www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema. 

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

 

Original source:

Changing Weather in the Northeast Calls for Greater Local Preparation

America’s PrepareAthon! First National Day of Action

WASHINGTON — Today is the first national day of action for America’s PrepareAthon! Today, individuals, families, workplaces, schools and organizations are coming together to practice simple activities to stay safe before, during, and after four types of hazards−floods, wildfires, tornadoes and hurricanes.

It’s not too late to join the more than 5 million people expected to participate in events across the country today and in the coming weeks and be counted in the movement.

The goal of America’s PrepareAthon! is to build a more secure and resilient nation by increasing awareness about what disasters could happen in communities and what to do to be safe and prepared. The campaign is focused on getting people to take action to increase their level of emergency preparedness and participate in community resilience planning. Resources to help you get started are available at www.ready.gov/prepare.

Here’s how to take action today:

  • Be Smart: Download guides to learn how to prepare for a tornado, hurricane, flood or wildfire
  • Take Part: Plan activities and host an event locally in the coming weeks.
  • Prepare: Practice a drill or have a discussion about preparedness
  • Share: Promote activities, events and best practices with national preparedness community members. Register an event at www.ready.gov/prepare.
  • Alerts and warnings: Timely information about severe weather or disasters can make all the difference in an emergency. Sign up for local alerts and warnings and check your mobile device to see if it is capable of receiving free Wireless Emergency Alerts by contacting your cellular service provider or visiting www.ctia.org/WEA.
  •  Safeguard critical documents: Following a disaster, having access to personal financial, insurance, and medical records is crucial for starting the recovery process. 

America’s PrepareAthon! events are happening around the country. Here is just a sampling:

May Day Houston – Hosted by the Houston Community Preparedness Collaborative, this citywide event has designated May 1 as the city’s official preparedness day. Individuals, companies, and groups join together to celebrate and promote preparedness.

#Petpared Twitter Challenge – Complete pet preparedness actions, like creating a pet emergency kit and taking pets on an emergency drill. After finishing, take a picture of your pet and yourself and tweet it with the hashtag #Petpared by April 30.

Colorado Federal Employee PrepareAthon! Exercise – All federal agencies in Colorado are participating in a tornado and evacuation drill on April 30.

Jefferson County Lunch and Learn Session (West Virginia) hosts a “lunch and learn” session on personal financial preparedness for national disasters on April 30 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Finger Lakes Disaster Volunteer Campaign (Rochester, NY) – Finger Lakes Regional Volunteer Center are kicking off a nine county virtual event to recruit non-medical disaster volunteers on April 30.

Red Cross Community Presentation (Culver City, CA) – Community ambassadors for the American Red Cross are hosting a quarterly meeting to discuss community support for the Red Cross mission to prepare, respond and recover from disaster on April 30 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Local AM Radio Station Hosts Preparedness Talk – WINY1350 in Putnam, Connecticut are hosting a one hour presentation on preparedness education airing April 30 from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.

Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center National Preparedness Awareness – On April 30, Brookdale are educating staff, communities, patients and their families of the importance of being prepared.

Learning protective actions and taking time to practice them, you, your family and your community can be ready to respond.

America’s PrepareAthon! participants commit to taking at least one concrete step to prepare for a hazard they might face in their community. The America’s PrepareAthon! website, www.ready.gov/prepare, provides Day of Action guides, How to Prepare guides, and customizable promotional materials designed to help Americans take action and join the growing number of individuals who recognize that preparing for disasters is a shared responsibility.

Follow the discussion on Twitter by following @PrepareAthon or #PrepareAthon. For questions about America’s PrepareAthon! contact PrepareAthon@fema.dhs.gov. For more information, go to www.ready.gov/prepare.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications. 

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.

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America’s PrepareAthon! First National Day of Action