Insights

2015 National Preparedness Report Released

• John Cornelison
• 6/2/15

Last Thursday, FEMA and its partners released the 2015 National Preparedness Report (NPR). The NPR is an annual status report summarizing the Nation's progress toward reaching the 2011 National Preparedness Goal of a secure and resilient nation. This report marks the fourth iteration of the NPR. The 2015 NPR places particular emphasis on highlighting preparedness progress in implementing the National Planning Frameworks. The Frameworks describe how the whole community works together to achieve the Goal.

Amateur Radio Class to be Held on Vashon this May

• John Cornelison
• 4/29/15

A Technician Test Prep class is schedule for May 15th 6PM to 9PM, 16th 10AM to 5PM, 17th 10AM - 3PM.

Preparedness promotes Health and Wellness

• unknown
• 4/18/15

Congratulations to the CERT class of 2015!

• 4/18/15

• Tags

  Training , Cert , Preparedness , Skills , Community

Last night the Land Trust building was packed with this year's CERT (Community Emergency Response Organization) students, and with CERT alumni ready to celebrate and welcome the twenty-six graduates of the CERT class of 2015. This class is news for a number of reasons. It's the first class that was managed by Jan Milligan, who is putting her energetic spin on this revered program. This class features some younger participants, which Vashon's rather gray-haired preparedness community sorely needs. And this class is notable for the already-deep skills and extensive engagement of a number of the students.

Every Fallen Thing

• John Cornelison
• 3/21/15

• Tags

  Recovery , Art , Oso , Landslides

A year after Oso, Arts WA is hosting a way for poets to memorialize that tragic event. Here’s one great entry:

Is it blizzard yet?

• unknown
• 2/4/15

• Tags

  2015th , Storm , Generator , Batteries , Water , Household , Kids , Ready.gov

Have you been following the big snowstorms back east? I’ve been listening in as distant friends and family rush to prepare, then hunker down to wait out the blizzard. Supermarkets are getting low on fresh foods, as families stock up in advance of the storm. Friends and family relate how they’re getting in extra bottled water and wondering how to maintain home heat and refrigeration if the power goes out. Maybe the gas tanks of their cars aren’t full, but they live in cities where they can walk to many essential services. In a city, the household plan for staying safe and comfortable may rely on municipal services, utility companies, and emergency responders. On rural and isolated Vashon, we don’t enjoy such a robust infrastructure, so we need to prepare as best we can, and be ready to help each other if possible.

It’s even harder to imagine winter weather right now, when Vashon is experiencing an early spring of sunshine and 60-degree days! Yesterday the sunshine and warmth drew me out to the garage, where I noticed a generator that needs an oil change, a food cache that could use updating, and a tangled mess of bicycles and lawn furniture blocking access to the spare batteries and lightbulbs. How embarrassing! The foundations of a strong NERO are its households: members of a well-prepared household are far less likely to need help, and are better able to assist neighbors. Like you, I want to be part of the solution (not part of the problem), so I sorted out the mess, and shopped for some new canned foods.

January is a great time for each of us to review the basics. Find lots of helpful ideas and lists at ready.gov, and remember that kids can be a big help in preparing at home. Already this year, a number of group captains have let me know that they plan to hold meetings and revive their neighborhood preparedness activities. Watch this spot and the local papers for some fun and inspiring NERO and household preparedness events throughout 2015! Now excuse me while I go change the oil in that generator…

Twin Reports Indicate Oceans May Rise Higher & Much Faster

• John Cornelison
• 12/5/14

• Tags

  Study , Climate change , Sea level

Two joint studies are out this week and indicate that the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2013’s predictions of a global sea rise of a bit over 3 feet by the end of the century could be way off.

Vashon Now Sports Five Weather Stations

• John Cornelison
• 12/5/14

Personal weather stations (PWS) supplement public weather stations, such as those at airports. Given the right equipment, citizens with a PWS can share their weather data with a number of services who will aggregate the data and help collectively provide better weather forecasts for the region.

West Coast to Get Free Early Earthquake Warnings

• John Cornelison
• 12/1/14

According to the LA Times, the entire west coast should get access to the first generation of early earthquake warnings as early as next year. Dependent on congress’ upcoming vote, the budget would be some $16 million annually.

WSDOT Winter Driving Supply Checklist

• unknown
• 11/24/14

Neighborhood preparedness begins at home - and in the car, because we never know where we’ll be when things get interesting. I saw a post from WSDOT this morning on Facebook that seems worth sharing - over the weekend, the passes got some harsher weather than expected. Click on the link below to view and print the Winter Driving Supply Checklist. I’m going to see how many items I can check off that are already in the back of my car - wish me luck. How did you do?

Are YOU Prepared for a Landslide?

• John Cornelison
• 11/14/14

Seattle to host Nov. 18th Twitter event to take questions about landslides

Red Cross Continues to Add to their Numerous Apps

• John Cornelison
• 11/11/14

The American Red Cross has released a slew of apps for the Android and Apple marketplace.