Last week we discussed some collaborative ideas to help get your local communities prepared while helping fund volunteer groups. This week we are encouraging people to discuss preparedness with others to help strengthen neighborhoods and local communities.

For decades FEMA, the Red Cross and many other agencies and professionals have said to prepare for at least 72 hours since it could take time for things to get back to “normal” after an emergency or crisis. But some disasters may cause people to go days or weeks without power or possibly water so it is best to prepare for at least 4 days or up to 2 weeks .. or longer.

Now some people will roll their eyes and think preparing for something that might not happen is just crazy or being paranoid. But you have car and home insurance in case something happens .. so why not have food and prep insurance?

Prepping is not what most people think. Oftentimes people hear the word “prepper” and think of people hunkered down in bunkers in isolation waiting for the end of the world. And sure .. there are some who think that way, but for the MOST part preppers are just average everyday people who prepare for something that may affect their normal daily routine.

The prepper community is all about helping others learn how to become more self-sufficient and people within that community might be just looking for advice about a 72-hour kit or seeking data about gardening so they can have another food source.

Prepper.org explains it well … “Whether it's the loss of a job, the loss of a mate, a natural disaster or financial collapse .. whatever your motivation, it's just good sense to have plans and preparations in place for the unknown. We buy insurance to cover us against the unknown and the unforeseen, and that's exactly what preps are. An insurance policy for life's unknowns. We do it for our families, and our friends and neighbors, because that's what life is really all about.”

Some of the key words in above paragraph are “families, friends and neighbors”. There needs to be more open discussion about preparedness at home, work and play. People don’t have to go into detail about what they store (esp if they have long term stashes) but ... there needs to be more interaction with those close to you to help spur interest in this topic.

Even the CDC is coming up with new ways to spur conversation by launching their Zombie preparedness message back in May. The “zombie” term has been used for years in the prepper and survival world so it’s refreshing and fun to see officials using it too. 

Today is the last day of National Preparedness Month but we are challenging everyone to please keep the preparedness discussion going year-round! The more people we can educate about preparing for the unexpected the better off we’ll be in our local communities and as a nation.

It doesn’t have to be a major adjustment either. Encourage folks to start off simple by getting a few extra cans of food, some water or supplies each week and they’ll be pleasantly surprised how much can be accumulated over several months.

Also download and share our free mini ebook with others since it has checklists and suggestions about making disaster supplies kits for your home, car and office and a first aid kit. And visit our Look inside the book page to download and share some free disaster tips and topics.

The following preparedness / prepping sites and resources can also help people get started .. and, if they want to dig a little deeper to get more self-sufficient, they can.

American Preppers Network (network and forum teaching self-reliance, sustainable living and preparedness) www.americanpreppersnetwork.net

CDC Emergency & Preparedness Response (data on Disasters, Chem/Bio/Radiological, etc.) www.bt.cdc.gov

Getprepared.ca (Public Safety Canada's family preparedness site) www.getprepared.ca

Ready.gov (DHS's family preparedness site + pages for Seniors, kids, pets, etc) www.ready.gov

Survival Blog (resources, daily blog, forum, etc) www.survivalblog.com

Also find many more resources, books, magazines and blogs on our Prepper Links page

In summary, no one can force anyone to get prepared but no one man can be an island. We are all going to need to come together during a crisis so there needs to be more discussion about preparedness in advance to help strengthen local neighborhoods and communities. Some exciting ways to start the conversation are our funding ideas for schools, youth groups and volunteers ~ learn more

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 OCTOBER PROGRAMS & EVENTS

There are several national programs and events happening in October…

National Cyber Security Awareness Month

October 2011 marks the eighth annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC).

Cybersecurity is our shared responsibility. That means everyone has the potential to make a difference and educate others. You can raise awareness within your community, no matter what your role is. The NCSA has developed a series of Get Involved sheets to provide suggestions on how you can participate and make an impact during National Cyber Security Awareness Month.

NCSA has many tools and materials available online for…

Consumers  (tools to protect home computers, wireless devices & kids) 

K-12 Educators  (lessons & teaching materials, etc)

Higher Education  (tips for college students and administrators)

Businesses  (tools to protect your biz, employees and customers) 

Learn more about National Cyber Security Awareness Month at www.staysafeonline.org/ncsam and get involved! (FedHealth is proud to be a NCSAM Champion) 


National Fire Prevention Week is Oct 9 - 15

The National Fire Protection Association’s official theme for Fire Prevention Week (FPW) 2011 is “It’s Fire Prevention Week. Protect your Family from Fire!”

FPW is the perfect time to reach out to your community and empower people to have a hand in preventing home fires and protecting their families with life-saving technologies and planning.

According to NFPA’s latest report…

• An estimated 374,900 residential building fires are reported to U.S. fire departments each year and cause an estimated 2,630 deaths, 13,075 injuries, and $7.6 billion in property loss.

• Cooking is the leading cause of residential building fires (44%). Nearly all residential building cooking fires are small, confined fires (94%).

• Residential building fire incidence is higher in the cooler months, peaking in January at 11%.

NFPA has many tools and materials available online for…

Agencies and safety advocates  (media materials, guides, fundraising, etc)

Educators  (Lesson plans, safety tips, family checklists, etc)

Kids and families (Safety tips, calendars, checklists, plans, etc)

To learn more visit www.firepreventionweek.org or NFPA’s Fire Prevention Week blog at http://nfpa.typepad.com/fpw/


Great California ShakeOut is Oct 20

On Thursday, October 20th at 10:20 a.m. millions of people will participate in the 2011 Great California ShakeOut! The purpose of ShakeOut is to help all Californians get ready for big earthquakes, practice how to protect themselves (Drop, Cover, and Hold On), and to prevent disasters from becoming catastrophes. For more information and to register, visit www.shakeout.org

Note from Bill & j: ShakeOut will be featured “In the Spotlight” in our October enews but mentioning here as fyi.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 ON THE FRONT LINES

FEMA, along with many other federal partners, has officially released the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF). The National Disaster Recovery Framework outlines how community recovery is supported and organized on a national level. It builds on scalable, flexible, and adaptable coordinating structures to align key roles and responsibilities, linking local, State, Tribal and Federal governments, the private sector, voluntary, faith-based and community organizations that all play vital roles in recovery. For more information, visit www.fema.gov/recoveryframework. Or download 116-pg PDF  (10.5M)


Next Nationwide EAS Test Information Update: October 13, 2011: Test Preparations and Procedures. Want to contribute to the EAS Best Practices Guide and Nationwide EAS Test Informational Toolkit? Go to A National Dialogue on the Emergency Alert System to contribute ideas or follow us on Twitter for information updates and events.

For official information on the Nationwide EAS Test, visit the FEMA IPAWS website at www.fema.gov/emergency/ipaws/eas_info.shtm  Also … check out a good EM blog post about the EAS Test Toolkit


On Sunday, October 16, 2011 those who died in the line of duty during the previous year will be honored during the 30th Annual National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend in Emmitsburg, Maryland. For the first time the bells of the Chapel at the National Memorial will chime in honor of our fallen heroes. As part of this special remembrance, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation is encouraging firefighters across the country to invite their places of worship to participate in Bells Across America for Fallen Firefighters. Learn more at www.bellsacrossamerica.com