Tag Archives: emergency preparedness

Emergency Preparedness Class

What:  SNAP Course
When: Monday, Nov 17th, 7 PM
Where: Crown Hill Center, 9250 14th Ave NW, Room 4

SNAP (Seattle Neighborhoods Actively Prepare) is a program designed to help Seattle residents prepare for disasters. We are all pretty familiar with earthquakes, at least those of us who were around in 2001 for the Nisqually Earthquake. But we’re not all that prepared for a big earthquake like the 1700 Cascadia quake which is thought to be the largest earthquake in historical times in North America and one of those quakes is due to occur every 300 to 500 years or so. Emergency preparedness extends to other situations as well from the very small scale to the very large scale. Imagine a very large windstorm, or a freak snowstorm and power outage (like the one in 2006 that left much of Northern Seattle without power and passable roads for three to ten days), or a landslide or a massive eruption of Mt. Rainier or…. As recent disasters in other countries have shown, emergency preparedness can mean the difference between life and death.

We are truly lucky to live in a city with such a massive infrastructure of emergency responders, and facilities. However, in a large scale emergency, our response systems will be completely overwhelmed and we will be largely on our own for a few days to a week or more before the response can be effectively mobilized with help from the feds, the state, the military and surrounding areas.

You don’t need to acquire a massive diesel generator or amass a 1 year supply of emergency rations in your basement. Small, easily accomplished, simple steps can make the difference. The problem is we all put off doing the easy stuff (or even finding out what stuff is easy and effective) until another day.

We’re partnering with the Seattle Office of Emergency Management to offer a course in preparedness for everyone. This course has been honed over the years to include what makes sense in Seattle. This course is focused on what you can do in your home, and with your immediate neighbors to be actively prepared. There is an active community of volunteers who teach the course, and we have arranged for Cheryl Dyer from Loyal Heights to teach us. Cheryl has been active in emergency preparedness for several years, most recently spearheading a grant to create six emergency communication hubs in Ballard and Crown Hill.

This class will immediately follow our monthly Crown Hill Neighborhood Assn Board Meeting. The board meeting will be abbreviated to accommodate the class. You are welcome to come to the board meeting as well, and that begins at 6:30.

Free First Aid training for Ballard and Crown Hill Residents

The Ballard Prepares team, with funding from a Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Small and Simple grant, is offering free emergency first aid training to the first 90 people in the Ballard area (this includes Crown Hill) to apply. The Ballard Prepares team advises that “the objective is to have 90 additional people who live or work in our community trained to be able to respond in an emergency.”

The course requires two online components to be completed before the one time, in-person training at the Crown Hill Center on January 26th from 9am-2pm.

The online components include blood-borne pathogens, and first aid. The in-class component will include CPR and the use of AEDs.

If you’re interested, please complete this form and email to ballardprepares@gmail.com. The first 90 people will receive directions to log into the online training course.

In exchange for this opportunity, Ballard Prepares asks that you make a commitment of being available to respond in your community to emergencies.

Application:  BallardPreparesEnrollmentForm.docx

 

Community Crime Prevention Coordinator Updates

We just received this missive from Terrie Johnston. And we’re mighty happy that she and the other two SPD Community Crime Prevention Coordinators will be continuing on!

 

Dear Block Captains/Contacts:  I am forwarding you an email from the City’s Emergency Management office as it has disaster preparedness information and dates on upcoming classes.  The recent snow, ice and winds remind us that we are often at the mercy of mother nature, but with some simple planning we can “weather the storm” more comfortably.

Other news:  Mayor McGinn and the Seattle City Council decided last November to maintain the 3 remaining Crime Prevention Coordinators for another year.

This means I will continue serving the North Precinct’s neighborhoods with establishing and maintenance of Block Watches; conducting free security surveys for both commercial spaces and residents.  I am available for personal safety trainings; workplace violence prevention, etc.  I am happy to be a part of the Community Police Team, and look forward to continuing this meaningful work.  Our Block Watch Captains are unsung heroes. We rely on your eyes and ears, and appreciate your sharing these e-lerts I send out with others.

Property Crime:  In much of the North precinct, the burglary rates have decreased or stabilized.  There are still increased numbers of residential burglaries in some northeast neighborhoods.  They are primarily occurring during the hours of 6 a.m. to about 6 p.m.  Knocking on doors to see if anyone is at home is still a common method used by thieves.  In some cases, there is a female driver who serves as chauffeur and lookout, for her male accomplices.   The lookout has been seen texting the thieves about watchful neighbors, etc.  Kicking in doors, or door jambs is prevalent.  We recommend all exterior doors be solid core doors, (or metal) and are a minimum of 1 ¾” thick.  For maximum security, all exterior doors should be equipped with a deadbolt lock and reinforced strike plates, using 3″ screws which will go into the framework.  Locks within 40 inches of glass are vulnerable.

Watchful neighbors remain your best alarm.  9 times out of 10, our burglars are arrested due to 9-1-1 calls from neighbors who heard or saw something suspicious and made that call.

I’ve received e-mails lately about door-to-door solicitors who may or may not have been legitimate.  So I am attaching again, information on residential home sales.  (I’ve sent this out before, so consider this a rerun).

9-1-1:  I think I speak for the entire Community Police Team when I tell you that every day in our e-mail inbox, or on our telephone’s voicemail inbox, we find messages from the community that say something like this, “I wanted to let you know that I just saw something suspicious…but I didn’t think this merited a 9-1-1 call.”  Almost always the information is detailed, with good descriptions and refers to something that may or may not have been criminal, but certainly seemed odd.  And almost always it is too late for SPD to do anything with that information.   I am now hoping to encourage you to trust that gut feeling of yours.   If you get the sense that something weird is happening, even if it isn’t an emergency, please call 9-1-1 and simply state what you are reporting.  The call taker will decide whether your call should be transferred off the primary line onto a secondary line.   You don’t know what you prevent by getting a patrol cruiser coming into your neighborhood.

Happy New Year!  Thanks for supporting Crime Prevention.  Contact me at 684-7711 for any questions or follow up services.  tj

Continue reading Community Crime Prevention Coordinator Updates

Winter Preparedness

Remember the snow, the power outages, bad driving conditions, fallen trees that have plagued Seattle in past winters. Resolve to do something this year to prepare your home and family.  The Take Winter By Storm website (takewinterbystorm.org) has lots of useful tips on preparations you can do at home, in your vehicle, and at work.

A few minutes of preparation can make a huge difference when that winter disaster strikes. The website has lots of ideas for common sense, low-cost actions you can take.

“What If” Expo, July 9th, 2011

We received this from the Seattle Office of Emergency Management:

Looking for the next big thing to do this weekend? Check out the “What If” Expo and get all the latest in emergency preparedness! It runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday July 9, at the Northgate Mall, 401 NE Northgate Way, Seattle, 98125.

Sponsored by Fisher Communications (KOMO TV/Radio, Star 101.5, KVI and Univision), they’ve put together what’s sure to be a fun, informative event for all. A number of local vendors and colleagues from throughout the region will be represented, with plenty of opportunity to pick up tips and advice on everything from storing water, meeting neighbors, keeping your home safe, preparing pets, practicing your plan and more. Be sure to check out the “Big Shaker” earthquake simulator too!

Go to: www.whatifexpo.com for a full schedule of events and sponsors. See you there!