By Mark Dreger
The BC Military Family Resource Centre (BCMFRC) held a presentation Saturday at the 麻豆精选 Regional Library on the importance of what to do in an emergency.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen this summer alone just in our own backyard in B.C., a whole bunch of locations in the States, and terrorism worldwide, that emergency can strike and nobody expects it,鈥� said D.J. Lawrence, City of Vancouver Volunteer Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness Instructor.
In light of disasters that have affected communities across BC like the fires in the Cariboo and the gas leak in Fernie, the presentation addressed disasters that could impact where locals live and work, such as fires, earthquakes, spills and leaks, and even zombie attacks.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not that anybody, that I know of, is anticipating zombie attacks, although there are interesting reports that have been done in the States on how they would reply to one,鈥� said Lawrence. 鈥淲hatever gets people thinking and talking about it because it鈥檚 kind of a morbid subject. People want to hope for the best and so on, I want them to plan for the worst.鈥�
Lawrence and BCMFRC executive director Tracy Cromwell stressed the importance of identifying hazards, establishing a family meeting place and contact, creating emergency kits, and knowing what to do with kids, seniors, and pets when emergency strikes.
鈥淓mergency can hit any of us at anytime, anywhere in our own community, or on a holiday, or in our work, and the more people that are prepared the better off we鈥檒l all be,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not that I鈥檓 doom and gloom, but statistically there鈥檚 an earthquake every so many years and my understanding is we鈥檙e well overdue.鈥�
Lawrence also addressed tips that could save lives, such as that smoke inhalation can knock someone unconscious before the smoke trips the smoke alarm. Some of the many tips Lawrence addressed included keeping cellphone use at a minimum during the beginning of an emergency to not chew up bandwidth, and to not leave batteries inside emergency devises, as they can trickle and be empty and useless after several months once an emergency may come about.
For those wanting to understand the basics of what to do in an emergency when power and internet become scarce, Lawrence makes the distinction between what to 鈥渄o鈥� and what to 鈥渒now.鈥�
鈥淭o 鈥榙o鈥� is to just start your kit,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淭here are excellent prepared kits for sure, but if you don鈥檛 do that or don鈥檛 have money or the resources or the space, just start a kit. Any bag will do. Just start the kit and give yourself a place to put things.
鈥淔or knowledge, have a plan. Talk with your family about how you would reconnect, what communications tactics you would use, what routes you would take, and where you leave notes. That鈥檚 the most important part to most people is how to reconnect with their loved ones.鈥�
The BCMFRC will be holding a second presentation in Vernon at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 29 at the Okanagan Regional Library on 30th Avenue.
