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Natural Disaster and Terrorism Preparedness
While
there is no indication that Santa Barbara County is a terrorist target,
Santa Barbara County Emergency Response Agencies have revised the existing
Natural Disaster Preparedness Plans to address potential acts of terrorism.
The Santa Barbara County Fire Department has enhanced its Hazardous Materials and Urban Search and Rescue Teams. New equipment and tools have been purchased for Fire Department Hazardous Materials Response Teams to assist them should they have to deal with an incident involving nuclear, biological or chemical agents. The Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Services has secured special terrorism grant funding to provide emergency decontamination equipment for hospitals countywide. County Firefighters and OES Staff are conducting countywide Community Emergency Response Training (CERT) for the citizens of Santa Barbara County.
The
1st Bi-Lingual CERT Class was taught at Santa Barbara County Fire Station
11. Santa Barbara County Fire Hospital Hazmat Training has been conducted
county-wide to help prepare emergency room personnel. Fire Hazmat Response
Team Personnel and OES Staff are providing WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction)
Hospital Hazmat training countywide.
Assess Your Level of Disaster Preparedness
Emergency response personnel are acutely aware that in a disaster the entire community needs to be part of the solution. Our residents will need to take personal responsibility for their own preparedness and provide assistance to their neighbors. Preparing for terrorism is the same as preparing for earthquakes, fires, floods, windstorms and other natural disasters. Making our communities disaster/terrorism resistant is a shared responsibility; we all must do our part.
What You Can Do to Prepare
- Plan and Prepare to be self-sufficient for 72-hours (3-days).
- Create an emergency communications plan for you and your family.
- Be sure to include an out-of-town friend or relative.
- Have a plan that includes pre-planning locations for more than one phone access including home or office phone, cellular phone or pay phone.
- Check on the school and day care emergency plans for your school age children.
- Read and fully understand the plans.
- Know where the emergency exits, staircases and fire extinguishers are at home, at work and when traveling.
- Practice Emergency Evacuation Procedures.
- Be prepared to do without services you normally depend on, such as electricity, telephone, natural gas, gasoline pumps, ATM machines and internet transactions.
- Learn what to do if asked by officials to "Shelter In Place" (remain indoors or in your car) or to "Evacuate" (leave the area).
- Assemble a Disaster Kit.