Get Ready…

Let’s be real for just a minute.

We all know that at some point our area will get hit with a fire,  an earthquake, a flood, or some other disaster that will disrupt our lives. And while a 9-11 man-made type attack is not likely, still there is a chance that something like that could affect the greater Los Angeles / Orange County area.

So, what do you do then?

The RHA Emergency Preparedness Team would like to help you to start taking some steps to get ready to sustain yourself, your family, and your neighbors. Once you’ve made it through the event, it’s about staying safe and helping others in your area. Teamwork can save lives and make survival easier for everyone. Our local CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) has training and resources to help you get prepared with hands-on classwork.

We’ve collected some good resources and guides to get you moving in the right direction. Please start by taking action at home.

First, ReadyOC is an excellent resource for all residents of Orange County. This public service campaign funded through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has common sense checklists, guides, and resources to help get and keep you prepared and emergencies. Check out the full site as you make time to prepare yourself and family. Here are some quick start highlights:

Emergency Kit Checklist – includes answers to how much water should you store and the other critical items to gather.

Build a Food Kit – Help you determine the types and amounts of food to store for your family’s needs.

Family Emergency Plan – A basic family emergency information plan to help get all critical emergency information in one place.

Special Senior Considerations – Additional considerations when preparing for emergencies with seniors.

Pet Emergency Kits – Don’t let your pets be forgotten when getting prepared. Include them with your family’s disaster preparations.

For the Kids – Play games and test your knowledge!  Parents – get the whole family involved in preparing!

Build Low-Cost Kits – How to put a kit together on the cheap

and maybe most importantly,

Subscribe to AlertOC – Get alerted on your cell phone, home phone, and e-mail when emergencies occur. It’s free, easy and sends out only important alerts.

Earthquakes

The most likely natural disasters we face here in Rossmoor and the surrounding area are earthquakes and because of our proximity to the ocean, the tsunamis they can generate. We’ve created a full page of resources to help you understand more about preparing for earthquakes, surviving the quake itself, and recovering in the aftermath. Once you have your basic emergency kits and information together, take a few minutes to fine-tune your kits and knowledge about earthquakes and recovering from them.

Flooding

Rossmoor was designed with a number of flood channels and catch basins to help manage stormwater runoff moving the water off our streets and away from our homes. The Orange County Public Works (OCPW) department maintains this series of flood channels and catch basins. According to OCPW, flooding or “ponding” as they refer to it, is most likely to occur in Rossmoor near the drainage channels, especially when debris clogs or blocks the storm drains, and along Martha Ann Drive and Foster Road. Please report any blockage or ponding you see to the County of Orange Operations and Maintenance department, 24 hours a day at 714-955-0200 or during major storm events through the Department Operations Center (D.O.C.) at 714-955-0333 or via email at StormCenter.DOC@ocpw.ocgov.com.

FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) provides flood maps for most of the United States including Rossmoor. The FEMA Map Service Center will allow you to search for your address.

The decision to purchase flood insurance is a personal one based on the information you have, your situation, the location of your home location and of course the type, timing, and intensity of the water event. As such we can only provide you with some government created resources to research flooding potential and let you determine how much if any, flood insurance you want to carry on your home.

Questions?

If you have any questions regarding preparing yourself and your family for emergency situations and disasters or suggestions on how we can help you prepare, please reach out to your RHA Emergency Prep team. Just fill out the form below and we’ll get back with you shortly.