EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
KEVIN TUNELL, YUMA COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
Kevin Tunell, Yuma County Communicatons Director
OVER THE PAST year, many of us witnessed the devastation caused by hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, floods and many other natural disasters. The images were taken during and immediately following the disaster capture the fear, confusion, and overwhelming sense of loss. Another common image during a crisis is that of emergency personnel and first responders fighting to save lives, property, or simply offering a comforting word or embrace. But what happens when emergency response services can’t reach you? Would you know what to do, where to go? Does your family, business, or school have a disaster preparedness plan or kit? How would you receive information or communicate if there was a disruption of telephone/cell communication?
The Yuma County Office of Emergency Management and the Public Health Services District’s Emergency Preparedness Program know you can’t predict an emergency, but you can prepare for it. A little preparedness can make a big difference in ensuring you, your family, business or school can handle an adverse event. Building community resilience starts with you!
Fortunately, Yuma County offers a variety of programs that can help you develop the skills and confidence needed to identify, plan for, and address a variety of emergencies and threats. The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program provides 20 hours of training for volunteers focused on the types of hazards most likely to affect our community. These include basic disaster response skills such as emergency communication, light search and rescue, team organization, and basic disaster medical operations. Participants have an opportunity to participate in disaster simulations allowing them to practice the skills they have learned. Once you complete the course you will be a part of a network of friends, neighbors, and coworkers who can provide critical support to your community in the event of a disaster.
During an emergency, it is critical to be able to receive and share information quickly and accurately. The Yuma Auxiliary Communication Services is a group of amateur radio operators who set up and operate organized communication networks locally for governmental and emergency officials, as well as non-commercial health and welfare communications for private citizens affected by the disaster. These networks are more likely to be active after disasters that damage regular lines of communication such as power outages and disruption of telephone/ cell communication.
A disaster or emergency can strike anywhere, or anytime. Power outages, natural disasters, and disruptions to our traditional cell and cyber communication systems can impact our ability to access medical, financial, and information services providers and may limit our ability to access water, food and other supplies. That is why it is important to have a disaster supply kit that would allow you to shelter in place as well as an emergency communication plan that details how you would communicate and reunite with your family if networks are down and you are separated. Your kit should have enough water, food, and medical supplies for you and each of your family members for 72 hours. The Yuma County Public Health Preparedness Program can help you develop a disaster preparedness plan. They can also help you identify resources in your community and connect you to community agencies that also work to help our community during a disaster. The key is to plan.
The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training is offered several times during the year. To learn more about the different training options and services available to your family, business, or school please contact the Yuma County Office of Emergency Management at (928) 317-4680 or the Yuma County Public Health Preparedness Program at (928) 317-4624.