by CHI Staff
The longstanding and
powerful former Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neil, is famous for saying that
“all politics is local.” In that vein, it is not a large leap to contend
that all emergency management is local as well. When a disaster or event
occurs, it is the citizens living in the affected area, and the first
responders who serve them, who are on the front lines. A community much
be ready to survive for at least 72 hours on their own before help may
arrive.
With the beginning of
Hurricane Season upon us June 1, it is important to remember to take
personal responsibility by having ourselves and our families prepared for
storms and other disasters. By securing personal preparedness, first
responders are able to address the needs of the community that inevitably
develop during an emergency.
The emergency management
preparedness manta remains Build a Kit, Make a Plan, Stay Informed.
More information on what to include in these kits and other resources for
personal preparedness can be found at www.ready.gov.
Beyond personal
preparedness, for emergency management to be effective it is imperative to
build community resilience. Adelphi’s Center for Health Innovation is working
to do just that.
Under our Partnership for Social and Community Resilience, CHI has
collaborated with communities to improve the resilience of Long Island
residents that were significantly impacted by recent disasters. Through a
competitive, self-nomination process, two communities were selected for this
program. These two communities differ in population, vulnerabilities,
resources, geographic location, and population variation. Both were
provided with customized resources from Adelphi University such as experts and
training. CHI and University College’s Emergency Management faculty and
students worked with recipients, using a guided self-assessment process to
determine current needs and capacities.
CHI then assisted with
development of a definitive community resiliency program, empowering town
officials in the process, and developing public-partnerships that are essential
to improving resiliency in a disaster situation. The results are tangible
products, for example a town-specific toolkit, a set of public service announcement
specific to these townships, and recorded in the prominent languages in those
areas.
We continued the
overall programming by partnering with the Nassau County Office of Emergency
Management and Suffolk County Office of Emergency Management to offer multiple trainings for
local emergency managers, public safety, and town officials including
providing the training on the Public Assistance Program to help town officials
to arrange for post-Sandy rebuilding of building infrastructure and the
development of building codes that promote resilience.
At the intersection of
our physical, community and social health is our vulnerability to
disasters. By strengthening our physical and community
infrastructure, we strengthen our community’s ability to be
proactive and strong. Preparing for disasters is a dynamic process
that includes building significant public-private partnerships, outreach and
involvement of residents and their neighborhood units and focusing efforts on
the most vulnerable in our communities. Just as the physical infrastructure is
constantly evaluated and strengthened, so must our communities’ social and
community resilience.
Preparedness at both the
personal and local levels leads to a more resilient public and one more ready
to handle hurricanes and other disasters.
