Get Serious! Hurricane Prep

Every year, as hurricane season approaches, I take the time to make sure my home is ready. Like Americans in many coastal states, I make sure my supplies and plans are all up-to-date.

This year, I was joined by members of the media and showed them exactly what I do in the hope that they would get out our message to everyone: Get Serious, Be Prepared.

At my home we have a generator, and I make sure before the season starts that we have sufficient fuel on hand to run it. I bought new batteries for my flashlights and radio. I checked my storm shutters to make sure they were in good shape and also confirmed I had little things like tarps and duct tape that can be essential if my shutters, windows or roof are damaged by a storm. I made sure I had enough prepared food and water on-hand to support my family for at least three days.

Go to ready.gov for some helpful information to help you prepare.

Sadly, there are some who still wait until it’s too late. In fact, a recent Mason-Dixon poll shows 85% of coastal residents made no additional preparations for a Hurricane in the past year; 50% said they would not make any preparations until two days before a hurricane is predicted to hit them. On top of that, 13% said they would not evacuate even if ordered to do so. More on the Mason-Dixon poll.

FEMA is doing our part to get ready.

This year, FEMA has teams standing by to be on the ground within hours of a storm or other disaster striking. FEMA has worked with vulnerable states to identify where they will most need support. We have improved our logistics and can better get the supplies and resources to a disaster site more quickly than in the past. We have plans in place to coordinate our activities with our partners at every level of government as well as with the private sector. Simply put: we are all better prepared.

FEMA has also improved our ability to deliver assistance through simple and effective delivery mechanisms, while also minimizing possible waste, fraud and abuse. We have expanded our capability to register those in need for aid and have mobile registration centers that can be on hand to help those without access to phones or computers.

As the official Hurricane Season for 2008 opens, I hope all Americans will join me in building a culture of preparedness. Whether your home is at risk from a hurricane, tornado, flood, fire or earthquake, every community faces its own risks. Being properly prepared can make a big difference.

I took the time to prepare my home this weekend. Now it’s your turn.

David Paulison
FEMA Administrator

Securing Our Schools

Yesterday I visited a local high school in Northern Virginia to meet with school officials and local emergency managers to discuss school safety, and the federal government’s efforts to help schools prepare for emergencies – both man-made incidents and natural disasters. I was joined by Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, who outlined their respective departments’ efforts to enhance school safety.

The tragedies we saw at Columbine, Virginia Tech, and even earlier this month in Cleveland seem to point to an increased risk of violence in schools. But despite these high profile incidents, the fact remains that schools are some of the safest places for children in our country.

We would be remiss however, if we failed to acknowledge that our children do face a minimal amount of risk at school. We need only recall earlier this year when a tornado hit Enterprise High School in Alabama, tragically killing several students.

In light of this risk, teachers, parents, administrators, and local first responders should take a few common-sense steps to be prepared for an emergency of any kind. It’s important that schools have emergency plans in place, practice those plans, coordinate with parents and local first responders, and if an incident does occur, follow the plan to reduce potential harm to students.

DHS is actively engaged with our federal partners, as well as with state and local officials to help schools be prepared. We have a number of resources available for teachers, parents, and school administrators, including interactive threat assessment CDs, safe school design manuals, and funding available through our grant programs. I encourage you to visit our Ready Kids website at http://www.ready.gov/ for additional information and preparedness tips.

I’ll leave you with an important statistic from the U.S. Secret Service and the Department of Education’s Safe School Initiative. They found that in 81% of the cases of targeted school violence they studied, other people had some type of prior knowledge that an attack was being planned. The lesson here for everyone – students, teachers, administrators, coaches, and parents – is if you see something, say something.

We can’t completely eliminate violence in schools, and we certainly can’t prevent natural disasters or other emergencies from occurring. But we can ensure that our schools are as prepared as possible and that we’re all working together toward the common goal of safer schools for our children.

Thanks for reading.

Michael Chertoff

For Yourself, Your Family and Your Community

As part of my job, I am frequently reminded of the dangers America faces from disasters, both natural and man-made. From hurricanes to terrorist attacks, they can strike suddenly and without warning, leaving behind a devastating trail of lost lives and property.

Astonishingly (to me), according to a recently released Harvard study, 31 percent of people in high-risk coastal areas would refuse an evacuation order in the event of a major hurricane. Even as Hurricane Dean approached, one-fourth of potentially at-risk Texans surveyed said they would not evacuate, either.

Over the past year, people across America have lost their lives and property due to damage caused by floods, tornadoes and wildfires. Today many Americans remain in a state of denial when it comes to disaster preparedness. Americans must be prepared for all types of disasters including the threat from terrorists, who can attack without warning and cause catastrophic damage and loss of life.

To help America handle disasters better, our Department is striving to promote a new culture of preparedness.

One way we’re doing this is through our annual National Preparedness Month, which we promote every September. Throughout this month, with the help of our Ready campaign, we have been encouraging everyone to develop their own individual and family preparedness plan, including an emergency supply kit, a family emergency plan, and emergency information. This is common sense which we owe our families.

But is it enough to encourage people to help themselves and their families in the event of an emergency or disaster? Shouldn’t we also want them to help their neighborhoods and communities? That’s why, throughout this month, we’ll also be highlighting our work with Citizen Corps, a nationwide movement of volunteers who are donating their time in precisely that way. (See my op-ed for further discussion.)

Through a network of state and local councils, Citizen Corps programs give volunteers a chance to do such things as assist law enforcement, acquire terrorism awareness education and basic emergency response skills, provide medical and public health expertise, and support fire and rescue departments.

Clearly, judging from that list, those who wish to join Citizen Corps will have a good menu of opportunities to help. They will also be satisfied in knowing that they are building community pride and patriotism, acquiring skills to help them take better care of themselves, their families, and their neighbors in a crisis, and reducing the burden on fire fighters, police officers, emergency medical technicians, and others who risk their lives and safety for all of us each day.

If you want to learn more about how you can help yourself, your family, and your community to be better prepared, feel free to contact Ready and Citizen Corps.

Michael Chertoff