September is National Preparedness Month

  • Published
  • By Mark Wyatt
  • 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – Emergency management personnel here will observe National Preparedness Month throughout September by encouraging members of the workforce and their families to “Be Ready!” The theme for this year’s campaign is “Disasters Happen. Prepare Now. Learn How.”

National Preparedness Month is an annual campaign started by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Department of Homeland Security in the year following 9/11.

“The goal of National Preparedness Month is to promote the importance of personal preparation prior to disasters occurring,” said Dan Jackson, 66th Civil Engineering Division emergency management program specialist. “Knowing what to expect and how to prepare makes any crisis more manageable.”

In addition, the Air Force Civil Engineer Center’s Emergency Management Division manages the Air Force’s “Be Ready” awareness campaign, a year-round push that provides a comprehensive set of resources covering all potential emergencies. Materials outline what to know and do before, during and after natural or man-made disasters take place. More information is available at https://www.beready.af.mil/.  

In a memorandum to base personnel, the installation commander encourages increased preparedness through communication.

“I encourage everyone to learn about our potential hazards, put together an emergency supply kit, make an emergency plan and join in local efforts to become a partner in preparedness,” read the memo from Col. Chad Ellsworth. “Only by working together as a team can we truly ‘Be Ready’ for emergencies.”

Throughout the month, Hanscom AFB emergency management personnel will send information specific to New England through each unit’s EM representatives and liaisons on these focus areas: Sept. 1-8: Make and Practice Your Plan; Sept. 9-15: Learn Life Saving Skills; Sept. 16-22: Check Your Insurance Coverage; Sept. 23-30: Save for an Emergency.

“We hope that the information we send will be shared throughout units on base, but also brought home and discussed with family members,” said Jackson. “Before an emergency happens, it’s important to sit down with your family and decide how you will get in contact with each other, where you will go and what you will do when an emergency happens.”

An emergency preparedness information display at the Hanscom Exchange will take place Sept. 19 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Individuals can pick up free disaster preparedness guides, speak with emergency management specialists and more.

EM officials will also visit the Hanscom Middle School in October to discuss preparedness and response topics with students and staff.

Jackson encourages base personnel to download the Air Force “Be Ready” mobile app.

“This easy-to-use, on-the-go emergency preparation resource provides users with practical tools including customizable family evacuation plans, emergency numbers and websites, as well as emergency supply checklists,” he said.

The Be Ready mobile app is free and available for Apple iPhone and iPad devices as well as Android devices.

For more information and resources to help you and your family “Be Ready,” visit the official website of the Department of Homeland Security at www.ready.gov.

Additional information is available on the Hanscom Emergency Management closed Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/205794276129475/ or by calling Jackson at 781-225-5921.