Greetings!
“Whenever they thought about it they felt
terrible. And so, at last, they came to a
fateful decision.
They decided not to think about it.”
Peter McWilliams
YOU MAY NOT BE ALONE
BUT
YOU MIGHT BE ON YOUR OWN!
Brian Kayes
2011
Next 50 minutes
Preparedness
Procrastination
Having a strategy
72 hours
Think about this!
“If you have always done it that way, it is
probably wrong.”
Charles Kettering
Emergency Preparedness
Preparedness activities are those “preimpact activities that establish a state of
readiness to respond to extreme events.”
 (Lindell and Perry, 2008, p.114)
What is Preparedness
Level of Community’s Coping Resources
Disaster Threshold
Range of Impacts
Accidents/Incidents
Emergencies
Disasters
What is Preparedness
Level of community’s coping resources
Disaster Threshold
Accidents
Range of Impacts
Emergencies
Disasters
Principles of Emergency
Preparedness
Preparedness and improvisation are
foundations of emergency
management.
Preparedness is a continuous
process.
Kreps, G. 2001. "Chapter 2: Organizing for Emergency
Management" pp79-100 in T. Drabek, and G. Hoetmer (eds.)
1991. Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local
Government. Washington: International City Management
Association.
Principles of Emergency
Preparedness
Preparedness reduces unknowns
during an emergency.
Preparedness is an educational
activity.
 Kreps, G. 2001. "Chapter 2: Organizing for Emergency
Management" pp79-100 in T. Drabek, and G. Hoetmer (eds.) 1991.
Emergency Management: Principles and Practice for Local
Government. Washington: International City Management
Association.
Principles of Emergency
Preparedness
Preparedness is based on knowledge.
Preparedness evokes appropriate
action.
Kreps, G. 2001. "Chapter 2: Organizing for Emergency Management"
pp79-100 in T. Drabek, and G. Hoetmer (eds.) 1991. Emergency
Management: Principles and Practice for Local Government.
Washington: International City Management Association.
Emergency Preparedness
Disaster Preparedness
or
Emergency Preparedness?
Value of Preparedness
Disaster do not happen to places they
happen to people
What is the value of people?
Let’s Get Personal
Preparedness is a personal responsibility
Me - You
My family - Your family
My home - Your home
My livelihood - Your livelihood
My community - Your community
Who we are
Gender
Socioeconomic status
Race
Age
 Mileti, Dennis. (1999). Disasters by design: a reassessment of Natural
Hazards in the United States. Joseph Henry Press, Washington D.C.
Value of Procrastination
Procrastination
Now that is something we have practiced.
What is procrastination
Yea, I’ll get to it later…
Think about this!
”The trouble with the future is that it
usually arrives before we’re ready for it.”
Arnold H. Glasow
Think about this!
“As you’re the only one you can really
change, the only one who can really use
all your good advice is yourself.”
John Roger & Peter McWilliams
Public Apathy to Disasters
The statistical probability is that when a
disaster strikes, it will strike elsewhereprimarily because there is so much
‘elsewhere’”.
 Drabek, T. E. (1991). Emergency management: principles and practice
for local government. Washington, D.C.: International City Managers
Association.
Apathy to Disasters
Disasters are low-probability events
Lack of experience
Lack of Awareness
Underestimation of risk
Overestimation of capabilities
 Auf der Heide, Erik. (1989). Disaster Response: Principles of
Preparation and Coordination, online edition. Center of Excellence in
Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance. USA.
Apathy to Disasters
Temperament
Personal values
Cultural background
Gender
Decision making ability
Education
Public Apathy to Disasters
Reliance on technology
Fatalism/denial
Social pressures
Defeatism
 Auf der Heide, Erik. (1989). Disaster Response: Principles of Preparation
and Coordination, online edition. Center of Excellence in Disaster
Management and Humanitarian Assistance. USA.
Government Apathy to
Disasters
Lack of Political Support
Opposing Special Interest Groups
Difficulty Sustaining Benefits of Preparedness
Lack of Organized Advocacy for Preparedness
Priorities Competing with Low Probability Events
Overestimation of Capability
 Auf der Heide, Erik. (1989). Disaster Response: Principles of Preparation
and Coordination, online edition. Center of Excellence in Disaster
Management and Humanitarian Assistance. USA.
Think about this!
“Faced with the choice between changing
one’s mind and proving that there is no
need to do so, almost everybody gets
busy on the proof.”
John Kenneth Galbraith
Preparedness Strategy
Pre-action
Not
Reaction
Preparedness Strategy
Expect the expected
Prepare when you travel
Take disaster threats personally
Be selfish
Preparedness Strategy
Make preparedness a part of your life
Protect your livelihood
Preparedness Strategy
Learn from experience
Preparedness Strategy
Stock your own resources
Have insurance
Preparedness Strategy
Get on a team
Play well together
Turn knowledge into action
Preparedness Strategy
Engage in planning
Family plans
Workplace plans
Business continuity plans
Special needs plans
Practice your plans
Preparedness Strategy
Know your plans
Know your family’s plans
Mother’s plan
Father’s plan
Children‘s plans
Preparedness Strategy
Know your workplace plans
Know your schools’ plans
Know your community’s plans
Preparedness Strategy
Increase your knowledge
Learn about warnings
Learn about hazards
Will you Panic?
Three things to help you panic:
a perception of immediate danger,
blocked escape routes
feeling that you are isolated
72 Hours
You and your wooden bead
“The pure and simple truth is rarely pure
and never simple.”
Oscar Wilde
Thank you