Learn to prepare family for disasters

Diane Huber

Markie and Phil Brown are prepared for just about any emergency.

Each keeps a pair of sturdy shoes, work gloves and a flashlight next to their nightstands.

They have a 23-pound bucket of powdered food that feeds 275 people, in flavors like barley vegetable, country noodle and Western stew.

Stuffed into nooks and crannies around their Jubilee home are gallon jugs of water, sleeping bags and backpacks stuffed with first-aid supplies. A huge rolling garbage can contains hard hats, a camping stove, blankets, rain ponchos, dust masks, cat food and more supplies - "in case we're stuck in the house," Markie Brown said.

"Or, if we have to walk, we would drag this with us."

The Browns are heading up the Jubilee active adult community's emergency preparedness program. They went through Thurston County Emergency Management's Map Your Neighborhood program, and they are charged with training others in their neighborhood to be prepared for an earthquake, power outage or other major disaster.

Neighborhoods preparation

The training covers the first nine steps to take following a disaster; a list of supplies and skills each resident should have; and how to create a neighborhood map with locations of natural gas meters, propane tanks and residents who are elderly or disabled and need to be checked on first.

Residents are instructed to care for their family and home first, then meet at a designated neighborhood gathering site.

The county recently offered the first of the statewide Map Your Neighborhood training sessions to neighborhood associations.

"We're really trying to teach people the skills to take care of problems at or near their homes," said Kathy Estes, emergency management manager for the county.

It could be up to 72 hours before help can arrive in an emergency, she said.

Those interested in heading up their neighborhood's disaster plan are urged to take the county training, next offered Sept. 25. Trainers then can order program materials and handouts to train neighborhood block captains on what they've learned. The captains, in turn, will educate the residents on their block.

Jubilee has taken the lead on disaster preparedness in the county, Estes said. The neighborhood also participated in a Department of Homeland Security program called Community Emergency Response Team that trained volunteers in first aid and how to help first-responders in a disaster.

Emergencies are real

The Browns see the Map Your Neighborhood program as another way the neighborhood can take charge of its safety. About 500 homes are sold in the community, which will have 1,170 homes at its completion in 2010.

The couple got involved with emergency preparedness in their Sunnyvale, Calif. neighborhood after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake in 1989 that caused downtown Santa Cruz to close, an overpass to collapse and some homes to be damaged. The Browns' home was unharmed - though they had some broken lamps and wall hangings - but it still was a wake-up call.

"I was in the bathroom and just watched the backyard undulate like a waterbed," Markie Brown said.

They've been adding on to their preparedness ever since. They secured every wall hanging, bookshelf and appliance to the wall when they moved to Jubilee three years ago to retire.

"A refrigerator can go straight across the kitchen and embed itself on the other side," Markie Brown said. Anything that's not secure "will become a missile."

Aside from sleeping more easily, the program also helps neighbors meet one another and feel more like a community, she said.

In Sunnyvale, "everybody knew each other by first names. It was wonderful," she said. "That's what we want."

Diane Huber covers the city of Lacey and its urban growth area for Lacey Today. She can be reached at 360-357-0204 or dhuber@theolympian.com.

Get prepared

Store your disaster kit in a convenient place known to all family members. Keep smaller versions in the car and office. Change water and rotate food every six months.

Water: Store one gallon per person per day; keep at least a three-day supply.

Food: Store nonperishable food that requires no refrigeration, preparation or cooking. Include food for infants or special diets. Include items such as paper plates and plastic utensils.

First-aid kit: Include nonprescription drugs and regular medications.

Tools and supplies: Include items such as a battery-operated radio, flashlight, can opener, utility knife, fire extinguisher, compass, matches in a waterproof container, signal flare, wrench to turn off household gas and water, whistle, toilet paper, soap and other hygiene items.

Clothing and bedding: Pack blankets and one change of clothes per person.

Important documents: In waterproof containers, store documents such as passports, Social Security cards, immunization records, bank and credit card account numbers, and other important numbers and family records.

Source: American Red Cross

Map Your Neighborhood:

The county's Map Your Neighborhood training covers nine steps to take following a disaster, a list of supplies and skills each resident should have, and how to create a neighborhood map showing locations of natural gas meters and propane tanks.

The next training will be Sept. 25. For information, call the county's Emergency Management Coordinator, Vivian Eason, at 360-786-5243 or e-mail easonv@co.thurston.wa.us.

On the Web

American Red Cross: www.rainier-redcross.org

FEMA: www.fema.gov

Thurston County Emergency Management: www.co.thurston.wa.us/em

Washington Emergency Management Division: http://emd.wa.gov