It Takes a Village

In light of the recent flooding due to Hurricane Debby, it seems, again, that our local community has stepped up to assist those impacted. Food, shelter, transportation, and more have all been donated to help those in need. It seems to go without saying that this is the norm. In my experience in our area, it does seem to be the rule rather than the exception. If you watch the news when catastrophic events hit in other areas, we generally see the same level of ‘volunteerism’ with hundreds of folks – even many of those impacted the worst – stepping up and helping others. This is not only laudable but seems to be an American trait – helping those in need.

We have been fortunate in that we have not experienced a severe storm here in quite some time. But, we've had a glimpse of nature's power. You must ask yourself, “Am I prepared?” This doesn’t mean, “Do I have enough toilet paper”, but entails much more. I was in New Orleans two days after Hurricane Katrina devastated that area. Looking at the pictures and thinking back, I can assure you these folks were thinking about a lot more than toilet paper! During our search and recovery operations, I saw cars still parked in the driveways with doors open, half packed. Even though there was some warning, the water came into these areas so quickly that people had to escape out of second story windows. We were patrolling down neighborhood streets in boats usually used for skiing and fishing. It was eerie to say the least.

In many places, thugs roamed the neighborhoods breaking into houses and taking whatever they wanted. They also preyed on the defenseless – women and the elderly – and committed unspeakable crimes. My niece was a Paramedic at the time and spent several days in the Superdome trapped by flood waters. It was indeed a once in a lifetime event … I hope.

In our area, like others that deal with tropical storms and hurricanes periodically, there are those who will decide to stay and have a party rather than leaving. I have said many times, with today’s forecasting capabilities, there should never be any deaths from a hurricane because there is plenty of warning. I understand that some, like law enforcement and healthcare professionals, can't leave, but most people can, and should leave.

Having said that, if you decide not to leave, you need a solid plan. If I were you, I would get a copy of "Disaster Prep 101" by my friend Paul Purcell (Amazon link HERE). He presents at the annual Emergency Management Association of Georgia’s annual summit and his classes are always full. Highly recommended.

With all the big pieces taken care of, you still need to be cognizant of the day to day personal protection issues we all have to deal with. With your mind distracted trying to keep essentials – food, water, shelter – available for your family, you must also deal with those miscreants who will use the circumstances to their advantage. Ensuring you have your self-defense/personal protection options available, and your situational awareness switched on, are imperative during these types of events. From the moment you are aware there could possibly be some type of weather event impacting your area, you need to be getting your assets and plan together.

Better to over plan and prepare than wait until the last minute. We see it every time there is any kind of storm. My wife does our “emergency shopping” prior to an event, and I take care of the homestead. She always comes home with stories of speaking with others in the grocery store or wherever, that are not even aware there is a storm coming! How can that be? Just because you fared well last time doesn’t mean you will this time.

There is an old saying in the training community that goes something like, “A lack of negative outcomes does not necessarily mean you did the right thing.” This is also known as ‘normalcy bias’. Normalcy bias (or normality bias) is a cognitive bias that occurs in times of crisis, leading us to disregard any signs or warnings that we are in danger. The same can be said regarding being prepared for any normal day-to-day emergency.

Are you really prepared or are you willing to let luck rule the day?

BE SAFE. BE EFFECTIVE. BE READY.