@ the Lancaster OEM

LANCASTER- September is National Preparedness Month (NPM) and is sponsored by the “Ready” Campaign in partnership with Citizen Corps and the Advertising Council. NPM is held each September to encourage Americans to make sure they are prepared for disasters or emergencies in their homes, businesses, and communities

September 2012 marks the ninth annual NPM and this year’s slogan is: “Pledge to Prepare, Awareness to Action.” The goal this year is to transform awareness into action by encouraging all Americans to take specific steps to ensure that their homes, workplaces, and communities are prepared for disasters and emergencies of all kinds. By doing so, individuals, business and organizations can commit to doing at least one of the following: 1. Learn about emergency hazards and their appropriate responses 2. Build an emergency kit 3. Make a communications plan 4. Get involved in preparedness in their community.

Individuals, businesses, community organizations and places of worship can register to become a National Preparedness Coalition Member by visiting www.ready.gov and clicking on the “Pledge to Prepare” banner.

NPM Coalition membership is open to all public and private sector organizations. In 2011, nearly 10,000 individuals and organizations registered to become coalition members in what was our largest number since the beginning of the awareness campaign. Each September, coalition members share preparedness information with their colleagues, customers, employees, and communities.

Members are encouraged to find ways to participate in existing events and meetings throughout their communities to share preparedness information, or create a preparedness event of their own. For an inclusive list of volunteer opportunities in your communities visit, community.fema.gov and serve.gov.

The NPM coalition website offers resources for coalition members that include:

• Toolkit

• Discussion forums

• Calendar of events.

Throughout the year, the “Ready” Campaign promotes individual emergency preparedness at home, at their place of work, and throughout their communities. “Ready” is a national campaign, produced in partnership with The Advertising Council, designed to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond to all types of emergencies, including natural disasters and potential terrorist attacks.

The “Ready” Campaign’s websites, ready.gov and listo.gov, and toll-free numbers 1-800-BE-READY and 1-888-SE-LISTO provide free emergency preparedness information and resources available in English and Spanish.

Citizen Corps brings together community and government leaders to involve community members in emergency preparedness, planning, mitigation, response and recovery. These councils enable collaborative planning between government and civic leaders and provide localized support for: outreach and educational efforts to the public; training and exercises that effectively integrate emergency responders, volunteers with a response role, and the general public; and volunteer programs that augment the full range of emergency response services. For more information about Citizen Corps, visit www.citizencorps.gov.

In addition, the fourth CERT training course is being offered at the Lancaster Office of Emergency Management, 321 Columbia Ave., Depew, beginning on Sept. 20. The classes will run for eight consecutive Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. For more information, contact Dana Estrada at 205-0075 or register online at www.niagara.edu/bcs-enrollment/.



Edward A. Gutowski

Town of Lancaster

Office of Emergency Management

Team Leader / Planning Officer

CERT Asst. Coordinator