West Seattle Be Prepared and the West Seattle Blockwatch Captains’ Network held a free SNAP training session for area residents at the Seattle Police Southwest Precinct on April 18.

Debbie Goetz from the City of Seattle Office of Emergency Management ran the interactive training that focused on organizing one’s neighborhood or office ahead of time to be fully prepared if a disaster, most likely an earthquake, hits West Seattle. Goetz said preparedness is on many Puget Sound residents’ minds in the aftermath of Japan’s 9.0 earthquake on March 11, making today a “teachable moment.”

In a lighthearted presentation underlining a serious topic, Goetz used the analogy, “the day of the prom is not the day to take your dance lessons,” and encouraged Seattleites to prepare ahead of time for the “when, not if” occurrence of a major earthquake.

Culture getting in the way of preparation

Goetz said although the information and support to organize a neighborhood disaster plan are easily accessible, there are cultural roadblocks in America and the Northwest that hinder many neighborhoods getting together.

“I would say, in general, people here in the United States – especially people who were born and raised in the United States – typically are much less connected to their communities … especially in urban areas.”

“To your face – very friendly, so nice, this is great to know who you are and all that stuff – but then people kind of have their own private friends and their own people, really their inner circle of who they are close to and they don’t always open that circle up very much.”

“I think as Americans we are oriented as individuals and then I think with our Northwest/West Coast culture its more, ‘Hmm, y’know I have my friends’ …”

Goetz noted that a colleague of hers works almost exclusively with immigrant populations in the Northwest and said they are generally more receptive to working as a community in emergency preparedness.

When the big one hits

Goetz said any earthquake over 5.0 on the Richter scale can cause structural damage, although a more intense quake would probably be required to reach disaster stage (defined as bad enough that emergency response will be overwhelmed and people will need to take care of themselves for at least three days).

Step one after an earthquake hits is to take care of yourself and your family. Goetz said the two most important things to remember are having a sturdy pair of shoes under your bed (broken glass and debris will be inevitable) and checking your house for fire danger – the most common source being the water heater breaking away and a fire sparking from the electrical or gas connection. Goetz recommends securing water heaters to studs in the house and said, in a fix, it is a good source of drinkable water.

Fore more information on how to prepare at home please check out the Herald article, West Seattle Be Prepared kicks off speaker series with Red Cross info.

“Will West Seattle get cut off? Plan for it and if it doesn’t, bonus,” Goetz, a West Seattle resident herself, said. “Really what we’re saying is look at the Duwamish, look south and look northeast. Essentially every neighborhood, potentially, could become its own island. You just won’t be able to get around easily like you do on any given day.”

“How are we going to manage ourselves if we become an isolated community?”

Goetz handed out a SNAP quick plan that breaks the neighborhood into teams of at least two that have their own focus in the aftermath of a disaster. She had those in attendance pick cards for their team and had them gather at the post-earthquake meeting spot (in this case the corner of the Southwest Precinct community room.)

“We get up after the ground stops shaking and we take a deep breath and you want to regain your presence of mind and you will be full of adrenaline … your hands will shake uncontrollably and you’re not thinking as clearly and so that’s where the knowledge and the practice comes in and having (a simple plan) written down right in front of you (helps out).”

The SNAP plan (which Goetz recommends as a framework to start from as each neighborhood will have different needs or skill sets present, so she encourages making changes accordingly) breaks the neighborhood down into the following:

Neighborhood Coordinators who oversee coordination, set up a meeting spot ahead of time, identify task priorities and monitor the other teams.

Utility Control teams that shut off gas meters and water mains if needed, rope off hazard areas and extinguish fires.

Search and Rescue teams that check homes with damage for anyone that needs help. Goetz recommends every house have a OK/HELP sign with their emergency kit to put in a window – helping the search and rescue team determine areas of critical need. The signs are available from the Office of Emergency Management (their link is found at the end of the story).

First Aid teams that establish a neighborhood first aid station, treat the injured and write down who was treated and how.

Shelter and Special Needs teams that set up a care center for anyone in need of special help, like children, those who live alone and pets. The team will keep a list of those staying at the care center.

Communications team that listens to the radio for important information and act as runners to communicate between the other teams. Two-way radios are ideal for quicker communication in the neighborhood, according to Goetz.

Damage Assessment teams that record damage to houses, utilities, roadways, etc in the neighborhood and remind/help neighbors record damage with photos or video for insurance claims and summarize all their findings on a data sheet.

The order of importance follows the above list – coordinators mobilize the teams and the first priority is utility control to avoid further damage or personal harm through fires, then on to search and rescue and so on. Coordinators and teams should have clipboards, paper and pens/pencils in their emergency kits to record their activity.

For more information on the SNAP program and upcoming training sessions, please visit their website here.