Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Cal EMA News Blog

Cal EMA News Blog


Be Prepared! Tells Southern Californians to Get Ready for the Next Emergency

Posted: 20 Sep 2011 06:16 PM PDT

Emergency Preparedness Kit

LOS ANGELES – September is National Preparedness Month and the first responder and disaster recovery communities were out in full strength today at the Exposition Park in Los Angeles. Emergencies never occur at a convenient time and studies show that most Californians are not adequately prepared for a significant disaster near their home or business.

*CLICK HERE to view today’s press conference*

Today, the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA) and American Red Cross Los Angeles Region co-hosted Be Prepared! on the South Lawn of the Exposition Park to remind the public that disasters can strike at any time and personal preparedness is priority to surviving and recovering from an emergency situation.

Cal EMA Acting Secretary Dayton interviewed by media

“Today’s event was a comprehensive approach to educating the public about how they can increase their personal preparedness,” said Cal EMA Acting Secretary Mike Dayton. “Our mission at Cal EMA is to help every Californian get an emergency preparedness kit and develop a thorough emergency plan for their home or business.”

The American Red Cross and Target provided premade preparedness kits for attendees at today’s event along side 40 other educational booths sponsored by local first responder and disaster recovery organizations.

“Here in Southern California, we are living in one of the most at-risk areas of the country. Yet few people are prepared for emergency situations, let alone a worst-case scenario,” said Paul Schulz, CEO of the American Red Cross Los Angeles Region. “Through events like these we hope to empower individuals to get a kit, make a plan and be informed for a major disaster.”

The Salvation Army hands out info at the preparedness fair

In partnership with the California Earthquake Authority and the California Seismic Safety Commission, Cal EMA also premiered “Totally Unprepared,” a unique view of just how unprepared the average Californian can be. The television and web series interviews unsuspecting citizens and quizzes them on how they and their homes are prepared for an earthquake.

Following a Sacramento event held at the State Capitol on September 7, Southern California’s Be Prepared! event is the second of three major outreach efforts that Cal EMA is part of for National Preparedness Month 2011. The final event will be in San Francisco at Bayview/Hunters Point on September 24. For more information on this and other emergency preparedness efforts by Cal EMA or to watch the news conference via a live webcast, visit our National Preparedness Month web page.

Arcadia Fire Dept. shows off a Cal EMA Mutual Aid fire engine

Participants include, but not limited to: California Emergency Management Agency, Target, Grainger, American Red Cross, Orange County Sheriff’s Department, California Veterinary Medical Reserve Corps, Safely Out, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles Police Department, City of Los Angeles Department of Building & Safety, City of Los Angeles Department of Parks & Recreation, City of Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, City of Los Angeles Emergency Management Division, City of Los Angeles Fire Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, The Salvation Army, California Geological Survey, California Highway Patrol, U.S. Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Navy.

Related links:

Cal EMA’s National Preparedness Month page

Totally Unprepared homepage


1 comment:

CAL FIRE NEWS LOVES COMMENTS...
- Due to rampant abuse, we are no longer posting anonymous comments. Please use your real OpenID, Google, Yahoo, AIM, Twitter, Flickr name.


Twitter Buttons

****REMINDER**** Every fire has the ability to be catastrophic. The wildland fire management environment has profoundly changed. Growing numbers of communities, across the nation, are experiencing longer fire seasons; more frequent, bigger, and more severe, fires are a real threat. Be careful with all campfires and equipment.

"I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer." --Abraham Lincoln

View blog top tags
---------------------
CLICK HERE TO GO BACK TO TOP OF CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS HOME PAGE

Subscribe via email to California Fire News - Keep track of Cal Fire News

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner