Let's Welcome Tara to the Preparedness Gang!

Being prepared for an emergency is important even when you are separated from your loved ones. I am a current intern for the Red Cross and working closely with Regional Preparedness Manager, Alex Villa on the Be Red Cross Ready program. From this experience, I have realized the importance of building a kit, making a plan, and staying informed. With my husband recently taking a job out of town and I am currently still living in the Valley, we are now putting together two disaster kits and action plans for each of our homes. A communication plan is vital in our circumstance. As we are currently separated from one another, it is so important for us to plan in advance. We have to take into consideration how we will contact one another, how we will get back together, and what we will do in different situations.

To get things started, we have identified one out-of-town contact person who will be notified if disaster strikes and one of us is involved. The both of us have the updated out-of-area contact information close at hand. It is also important for us to become familiar with the emergency plans for each others place of employment and how they will communicate with families during an emergency. Knowing this emergancy plan will help to prepare and reunite me with my husband after an emergency. Being prepared and knowing what disasters may strike in both areas is important. If and when an emergency occurs, being informed will help determine if we need to stay at our current location or meet one another at a specified evacuation site between the both of us.

There is a lot to think about when preparing for a diaster, with the both of us living in different locations. By building our disaster kits, creating our action plan, and knowing how to stay informed, we are one step closer to being prepared for a disaster. We don’t know if and when a disaster will strike, but having the knowledge and tools to be prepared will help to minimize any stress and chaos. Disaster can strike quick and without warning, knowing what to do is your best protection and your responsibility. Let this be a reminder how important it is for you and your loved ones to be prepared for any emergency.

Tara Isaak Rothford is an intern in our Preparedness Education and Outreach program. She joins us from California State University, Fresno and is a currently working on her Masters in Public Health Education.

Prepare-aphernalia: The Earthquake Safe Bed

As Californians we are constantly worried for "The Big One." You know, the earthquake of earthquakes! While we are long overdue, no one can predict the exact time and date for when and where it will occur. 

I am probably the most prepared person I know, but what if I am caught off guard by the earthquake, like during the night while sleeping? Well, have no fear worry-warts!

A retired Chinese inventor has come up with a way to protect youself from the threat of earthquakes for at least a third of your life as that’s how long you’ll spend sleeping in bed.

The idea for this earthquake-proof bed is not just safe, though, it’s stylish and functional. You might not know it from looking at the picture but the three wooden sides to this bed function not only as a frame, but as storage cupboards that can be filled with earthquake preparedness kits as well as automatically combining to form a “strongbox” which protects its sleeper from debris in the event of a quake. Depending on the supplies they’d packed, a person could survive for several days in such a box.

The bed isn’t commercially available yet, but seems like a good idea for anybody living in an earthquake prone area. Of course, you should also follow these precautions when trying to survive an earthquake.

Are You Red Cross Ready?

While many of you were asleep this morning, the Red Cross was live on KSEE Sunrise helping individuals Be Red Cross Ready for anything. Check out Regional Preparedness Manager, Alex Villa as he teaches Pamela Prado of KSEE 24 how to Get a Kit, Make a Plan, and Be Informed.

The Zombie Map of the World

How do you combine an obsession with Zombie movies and data analysis of Google Maps?

Simple, you produce the map, above. It was created by Oxford University's Internet Institute - and the guys behind the fantastic dataviz site, Floating sheep: Mark Graham, Taylor Shelton, Matthew Zook and Monica Stephens.

Using a keyword search for "zombies", it visualizes the absolute concentrations of references within the Google Maps database.

The map reveals two important spatial patterns. First, much of the world lacks any content mentioning "zombies" whatsoever. Second, and related, the highest concentrations of zombies in the Geoweb are located in the Anglophone world, especially in large cities.

It also shows how Africa, where the word 'zombie' originally came from, misses out on those criteria.

Graham, whose favorite Zombie movie is the original Romero Dawn of the Dead ("the classic of the genre") says of the map:

The results either provide a rough proxy for the amount of English-language content indexed over our planet, or offer an early warning into the geographies of the impending zombie apocalypse

Note: If you reside in or anywhere near one of the zombie infested areas listed above, be sure that you build  your own zombie preparedness kit.

Get Tech Ready: Prep Messages and Tips for National Preparedness Month

Recent weather events such as Hurricane Irene, the earthquake on the East Coast and other natural disasters highlight the need for Americans to prepare for emergencies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the American Red Cross, the Ad Council and Google Crisis Response are collaborating to launch a new preparedness web resource, Get Tech Ready on behalf of the Ready campaign.

Released just before the start of National Preparedness Month, this new resource educates individuals and families about how using modern-day technology can help them prepare, adapt and recover from disruptions brought on by emergencies or disasters.

A recent American Red Cross survey showed that the internet, including online news sites and social media platforms, is the third most popular way for Americans to gather emergency information and let their loved ones know they are safe. 

“As technology becomes more a part of our daily lives, people are turning to it during emergencies as well. We need to utilize these tools, to the best of our abilities, to engage and inform the public, because no matter how much federal, state and local officials do, we will only be successful if the public is brought in as part of the team," FEMA Administrator, W. Craig Fugate.

“During Hurricane Irene, we saw people using new technologies in many ways, whether it was thousands of people downloading our new shelter finder App or others using our Safe and Well site and social media to let their friends and family know they are OK, ” said Gail McGovern, President and CEO of the American Red Cross. “People now have more varied resources available at their fingertips that they can use before, during and after emergencies.”

Get Tech Ready provides Americans with tips on how to use technological resources before, during and after a crisis to communicate with loved ones and manage your financial affairs. Preparedness tips on the website include:

• Learn how to send updates via text and internet from your mobile phone to your contacts and social channels in case voice communications are not available; 
• Store your important documents such as personal and financial records in the cloud or on a secure and remote area or flash or jump drive that you can keep readily available so they can be accessed from anywhere; and
• Create an Emergency Information Document using the Ready.gov Family Emergency Plan template in Google Docs or by downloading the Ready Family Emergency Plan to record your emergency plans. 

“Get Tech Ready is a resource that will truly help people in the US and around the world understand how they can use widely available technology to prepare for potential crises,” said Nigel Snoud, Product Manager, Google Crisis Response.  “We’re thrilled to be working with FEMA, the American Red Cross, and the Ad Council on this public service project.”

“We are delighted to collaborate with FEMA, Google and the American Red Cross to expand ourReady messages through this new web site to educate more Americans about the vital need to get prepared in advance of an potential emergency,” said Peggy Conlon, president & CEO of the Ad Council. “The web site will provide access to critical resources to Americans addressing the importance of using technology as part of their individual and family preparedness plans.”

Launched in 2003, National Preparedness Month is designed to encourage Americans to take steps to prepare for emergencies throughout the year. The Ready campaign was also launched in 2003 by FEMA in partnership with the Ad Council. Since its launch, media outlets have donated more than $900 million in advertising time and space for the PSAs. The new PSAs will air in advertising time that will be entirely donated by the media.

Are You A Germ-A-Phobe?

If you avoid shaking hands or, worse yet, flushing a public toilet with your fingers, you might just be a germ-a-phobe.

[And if you watched Contagion recently, you're probably even more terrified of a viral outbreak!]

Germ-a-phobes have always filled our workplaces, but their ranks are growing with concerns about H1N1, Bird Flu and Swine Flue. Gone are the communal candy dishes; here are the bottles of hand sanitizer.

Anyway, I highly recommend checking out this article that takes a much deeper look at germs and how our office buildings are crawling with them. One interesting tidbit? Office desks are 400 times germier than toilet seats.

And now that you've read that, I recommend getting busy with some keyboard sanitizing wipes and flu safety tips. Ick.

Worldwide Wednesday Wrap-Up!

Welcome to the Worldwide Wednesday Wrap-Up, in which we consolidate the international Red Cross and Red Crescent news into one list of bite-sized links for you. It's a non-comprehensive sampling of the larger and/or more intriguing aspects of our global work...

KENYA: The ICRC has setup phone service in Dadaab, for the many thousands of refugees fleeing the conflict and drought in Somalia. This allows refugees the opportunity to make a phone call to an immediate family member or other close relative anywhere in the world. More than 7,200 have taken advantage of the service.

LIBYA: Over the past week the ICRC has been providing medical supplies along the front lines of four disputed areas. The supplies are being staged for use at hospitals to help increase their capacities and capabilities. Additionally, continued support is being made available to those displaced by the ongoing conflict.

YEMEN: The ICRC is currently monitoring the situation in the capital of Sana’a, where a ceasefire has been agreed upon for the conflict between Government forces and protestors.

HUNGARY: Earlier this week the IFRC and the United Nations Volunteers program co-hosted more than 200 volunteer organizations from across the world in adopting a Declarationdetermined to value, recognize and encourage volunteering’s contribution to people, their communities and our planet.

RUSSIA: The IFRC is delivering immediate assistance in the Russian Federation to 1,800 families in the Krasnodarskiy Kray (region) and the Republic of Adygeya, in response to flooding caused by heavy rains.


GLOSSARY:

ICRC = International Committee of the Red Cross
IFRC = International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies