Be Your Own First Responder in a Natural Disaster, Say Officials

“We should be thinking about this all the time and if Hurricane Harvey isn’t enough to get us started, I don’t know what is," says Kery German, Crime Prevention Specialist at City of Palmdale.

Given September is also National Preparedness Month, it couldn’t be a better time to take stock of your emergency inventory. Officials want to be sure you can “shelter in place” for at least 72 hours after a disaster.

“The Houston Fire Department received 75,000 9-1-1 calls over a two or three day period. This Fire Station that we’re in right now is 12 to 15 calls on an average day. Now this Fire Station’s jurisdiction is about eight square miles, has about 35,000 living in this district. Can you imagine if they all called 9-1-1 at the same time? There’d be no way for this one Fire Station to handle the calls," says Captain Scott Polgar, Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Which means, first responders would be quickly overwhelmed if a Hurricane Harvey-level disaster happened here.

“In the event of an earthquake, we’re all of a sudden, every one of us, first responders and citizens, are thrust into a disaster. So it’s absolutely imperative that people have some basic supplies on hand prior to that disaster," says Captain Polgar.

In other words, be your own first responder. To do that, you can buy a ready made emergency kit, or you can make one. Kery German's kit includes food, water, first aid, whistle, knife, blanket, poncho, lighting, matches, a change of clothes, and “this is my wind up, battery-operated or solar-operated radio, so you can at least get a little bit of information. It’s also a flashlight and you can charge your cell phones with it.”

While you’re taking steps to safeguard your family, your pets and yourself, first responders and the Antelope Valley Community Emergency Response Team are continually working to safeguard the entire area. In fact, there are 14 shipping containers like this one located throughout the Valley full of disaster preparedness supplies.

But, they say, stay diligent.

“Make sure you set aside some supplies. It’s as easy as the next time you go to the store, buy an extra couple gallons of water for you, your family and your pets, and do that every couple days or so and you’ll be better disaster prepared than you were before," says Captain Polgar.

Officials say a good place for your emergency kit is right here in your vehicle. You hope you never need it, but if you do, it will help you be your own first responder.

During National Preparedness Month, the City of Palmdale will be conducting two events on September 13th, to help residents prepare for a natural disaster. The presentation at 9:00 a.m. at Legacy Commons is geared toward seniors. The second presentation, at 7:00 p.m. at City Council Chambers, is for everyone. It will feature speakers from the Red Cross, L.A. County Fire Department, L.A. County Sheriff's Department and others.