The "Disaster Dozen" Top Twelve Myths Of Disaster Preparedness
Hurricane Katrina and others in the season have given us yet
another disaster preparedness wake-up call. Do we pay attention
now or hit the snooze button again?
Pushing past the debates over government reaction, we come to
the bottom line conclusion that, "Yes, more could have been
done." In other articles we'll get into some of those debates,
but for now, let's look at the most important part of a
comprehensive emergency readiness plan, and that is the
preparedness levels of individuals and families.
We find that the biggest obstacles to comprehensive family
emergency readiness education are the misconceptions surrounding
the true nature of preparedness. So, to set the stage for better
education, and ultimately better public safety, let's take a
look at some of these myths.
1. "If something happens all I have to do is call 911." Help can
only go so far, or be there so quickly. Security, like charity,
begins at home and the responsibility for your family's safety
rests on your shoulders. This isn't to say that you shouldn't
call for help when it's truly needed, it's to remind you that
you may be on your own for while, especially if the situation is
an expansive, or severe one.
2. "All I need is a 72-hour kit with a flashlight, first aid
kit, some food and water, and a radio." We're not sure where the
"72 hour" figure came from, but it's an extremely minimal amount
of time and not very realistic. A more practical goal is to be
self-sufficient for a minimum of 2 weeks. Why 2 weeks? As bad as
Katrina was, there are numerous disaster and terrorism scenarios
that could see substantially more damage, and a disruption of
local services for three weeks or more. Also, many biological
scenarios may see a 2-week quarantine. Regarding supplies and
equipment, avoid the "one-size-fits-all simpleton lists" and
customize yours to your family's unique threats, needs, and
assets.
3. "My insurance policy will take care of everything." SWAT
teams of insurance agents aren't going to instantly rebuild your
life like on TV. Insurance companies will be far more concerned
about their own bottom line than yours. In fact, many insurance
companies are rewriting policies to redefine some rather common
terrorism or disaster related incidents as being excluded and
not coverable. Check your policies closely!
4. "Good preparedness is too expensive and too complicated."
Nothing could be further from the truth. The problem is, we
haven't made preparedness a part of our overall education. We
get more preparedness info on an airline flight than we get as
citizens. Most of us aren't taught that there are literally
thousands of subtle, simple, and economical things we can do to
drastically improve our emergency readiness. The notion that it
might be expensive or complicated has come from companies that
aggressively market high-priced unnecessary gear.
5. "We can only form a neighborhood group through FEMA, the Red
Cross, or local Law Enforcement." Neighbor helping neighbor is
one of our highest civic duties. No one regulates this and you
don't have to get anyone's permission to coordinate your safety
with others. Working with these groups is rather advantageous,
but not required.
6. "In a 'Weapons of Mass Destruction' terrorist attack, we're
all dead anyway." "WMDs" might kill larger numbers of people,
but that doesn't mean widespread destruction is a guaranteed
thing. In fact, for widespread destruction, a top-grade WMD must
be expertly and precisely applied under ideal conditions. This
does not mean that WMDs are to be ignored or that they're
nothing to fear, it's just that "Mass Destruction" does NOT mean
"Total Destruction" at all.
7. "Nothing like that could ever happen here." Though some areas
are more prone to certain types of disasters, say earthquakes in
California, or terror attacks in New York, no area on earth is
completely immune. Too, with as much as people travel, you might
travel somewhere and wind up in a disaster you never thought
about.
8. "All I have to worry about is my own family." Technically
yes, but the more you're able to care for your own family, the
more you can and should help others.
9. "If preparedness were really important it would be taught in
school." Preparedness really is that important, but schools only
have so much time and budget to teach the things they already
do. This is one of the many things we're trying to change, but
for now, you're going to have to not only realize the importance
of thorough emergency readiness, but to teach your family
yourself.
10. "I can get free preparedness information on the Internet."
Many free sources contain really good information. However, it
takes time and experience to filter the trash from the treasure.
Worse, some of these free sites have "information" that could
actually cause more problems than they cure. This is why we
spent years in gathering the over 400 additional books and
training manuals on the CDs in "Disaster Prep 101."
11. "Full preparedness means I have to get a lot of guns and be
a 'Survivalist." While personal security and family safety are
valid concerns, the vast majority of people around you will not
be a threat. In fact, though looters gained a lot of media
attention after Katrina, there were far more numerous stories of
heroism. We suggest you balance your personal security needs
with your desire to help those around you and strive to reach
the best of both worlds.
12. "If something really bad happens, NO one will help." There's
no such thing as "no one helping." However, the best thing
people can do to is to prepare their families so they need as
little outside help as possible. There's always someone needier
than you and the more prepared you are, the more you free up
assistance resources so they can help those less fortunate.
Copyright 2005, Paul Purcell.