Pat Johnson of the Palm Beach County Division of Emergency Management gave a special presentation to the Loxahatchee Groves Landowners’ Association at its monthly meeting Thursday, July 24.
Before Johnson’s presentation, Kathy Strehlow updated the group about the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), which is made up of trained volunteers who respond after major events before first responders arrive.
The floor was then opened to Johnson, also a volunteer CERT coordinator, who discussed the division’s standard presentation, “2014 Hurricane Preparedness: Are You Ready?”
“The whole thrust of emergency management now is ‘all hazard.’ Those are the new buzzwords, not just hurricanes — that’s all we tend to think about, but there are other hazards,” she said, citing natural gas pipelines, concerns about dikes and more.
Johnson asked the group to look over the planning part of pre-event preparation, such as having a family communication plan, stocking up on supplies for humans and animals, and safe meeting locations.
“Do the kids know who to call, where to call?” she asked.
Though not extremely relevant to Loxahatchee Groves, Johnson explained the importance of considering the storm surge and being prepared to evacuate ahead of time.
“If it’s safe, stay home,” Johnson said.
If you can’t stay home, there are shelters, mostly at schools scattered throughout the county. “They’re planning on 50,000 people, and that’s based on the evacuation zones; that’s not based on us going to a shelter,” Johnson said.
There are special-needs shelters for medically fragile and oxygen-dependent individuals who have a caregiver, located at the South Florida Fairgrounds. Transportation is available to bring people to the fairgrounds, but pre-registration is required. There is one pet shelter, but it is for smaller companion animals, not large animals like horses.
Points of distribution, known as PODs, provide water, relief supplies and shelf-stable meals. With 16 sites throughout the county, the PODs are able to provide supplies in areas where supermarkets and stores are not operational. If products are readily available in stores, then food and water will not be available at PODs.
“Within 24 hours, people are lined up for free ice and water,” she said. “That’s not going to happen again. They have created partnerships with businesses, and the head of that particular group will be checking with their business partners. If food and water are readily available in a store, then a POD will not open up in that area.”
Looking at suggested hurricane kit contents, many suggestions arose.
For example, most people keep vital records and birth certificates in the bank. Without access to a safe deposit box, having a copy of various records is important. Having cash on hand is incredibly important, as is having enough potable water. Wells need electricity to operate, and without them, there might not be enough water to sustain larger animals. One suggestion is to fill clean trash cans with water for animals, remembering just how much water horses drink daily.
“You have to think of that, because that’s part of your family, too,” Johnson said, regarding how easy it is to overlook an adequate food and water supply for animals in addition to the supplies for people.
If a state of emergency is declared, people can go to the pharmacy and get a 30-day supply of their medicines. There are limitations, but the Emergency Prescription Refill Law, Florida Statue 465.0275, contains all of the details.
Social media are a great way to remain informed. The Division of Emergency Management now has a Twitter account.
“Because social media is so rampant in terms of being used, people turn first to their cell phone,” Johnson said. “They’ll try to make calls, and that causes saturation of the cell towers.”
The county now has a room to monitor social media during an emergency.
“When an event happens, it is staffed with people who do nothing but monitor Twitter, Facebook and that kind of stuff to pick up the rumors,” Johnson said. “They take it to the executive group… to try to get ahead of the rumor mill.”
There is a cell phone application that uses GPS to locate the nearest stores, gas stations and other important area locations that are open, report on damage and learn additional information. The application is called Dart and is available for free at www.readypbc.org.
The Loxahatchee Groves CERT information can be found at www.loxahatcheegrovesfl.gov, where community members can volunteer, learn about emergency preparedness and learn about ham radio use. At the last count, there are at least 14 ham radios in the Loxahatchee Groves CERT.
“A lot of it’s who you know, and do you know how to get to them,” Johnson said. “You need to remember, you can text with your cell phone, even if you can’t call.”
Between the ham radios and the Red Cross emergency web sites, messages can get out to reassure friends and family of safety, as needed.
One of the most useful web sites to be familiar with prior to a storm, Johnson said, is www.readypbc.org, where visitors are walked through critical preparations and steps for storm safety. For more information, call (561) 712-6400.
For more information about the LGLA, contact President Marge Herzog at (561) 818-9114.
ABOVE: CERT members (front row) Nancy Handwerg, Becky Elliott, Diane von Grote and Carol Bailey; (back row) Barb Otto, Kris Potter, Kathy Strehlow, Pat Johnson, Dave Elliott, Ken Johnson and Claus von Grote.
