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Articles on Emergency planning

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Mark Poindexter puts a tarp on the damaged roof of his home in Gulf Breeze, Louisiana, on Aug. 29, 2020, in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura. AP Photo/Gerald Herbert

Hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, floods – whatever your local risk, here’s how to be more weather-ready

Federal weather scientists are pushing to make the US more ‘weather-ready,’ which could mean prepping for fires, flooding or storms depending on where you live. The common factor: thinking ahead.
Air raid wardens in Washington, D.C., conduct a practice air raid. Office for Emergency Management, Office of War Information/National Archives

Cold War-style preparedness could help fight future pandemics

Since the Cold War, Americans have shifted from engaging in active self-rescue to passively waiting for help from a centralized, bureaucratic federal emergency response.
Members of the Maryland Air National Guard arrange medical supplies for shipment from the Strategic National Stockpile. Master Sgt. Christopher Schepers/Maryland Air National Guard

Coronavirus: Strategic National Stockpile was ready, but not for this

The paradox of the stockpile is that it’s meant to protect against future threats, but is limited by today’s imagination about what those threats might be.
A health-care worker prepares for the opening of the COVID-19 Assessment Centre in Ottawa, during a media tour on March 13, 2020. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang)

Coronavirus: Canada’s response hits a turning point

As response to COVID-19 moves from a learning phase to an operational phase, lessons from the 2009 H1N1 pandemic can inform Canada’s action plan.
Fires break out across San Francisco after the April 18, 1906 earthquake. USGS

California’s other drought: A major earthquake is overdue

According to current forecasts, California has a 93 percent chance of an earthquake with magnitude 7 or greater occurring by 2045. Early warning systems, now in development, could limit casualties and damage.
Isiah Courtney carries his dog Bruce through flood waters from Tropical Storm Harvey in Beaumont Place, Houston, Texas, U.S., on August 28, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Bachman

Seven ways to protect your pets in an emergency

In the wake of natural disasters, pets are be stranded, lost or abandoned. There are simple guidelines that can help keep your whole family safe.
Naval Aircrewman (Helicopter) 2nd Class Jansen Schamp rescues two dogs after floodwaters from Hurricane Harvey reached the grounds of a shelter in Vidor, Texas, Aug. 31, 2017. Christopher LIndahl/U.S. Navy

In cities and on ranches, planning is key to protect animals during disasters

During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, some people died rather than evacuating without their pets. Now emergency managers are required to include animals in their response plans.
Brenda Bradley, 72, and her husband Jimmie, 78, survey flooding from Hurricane Harvey in their neighborhood in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, August 28, 2017. AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis

Older victims of Hurricane Harvey may need special attention as Texas recovers

Evacuations and disruptions to health care during and after disasters like Hurricane Harvey are serious threats for older adults, who may need support well after relief operations end.
U.S. Army Spc. Pam Anderson applies first-aid medical attention to an elderly man during flood relief operations just outside of Winona, Minnesota, August 20, 2007. Staff Sgt. Daniel Ewer, U.S. Army

Disasters can harm older adults long after storms have passed

New research shows that older people are especially at risk during and after natural disasters, and may need medical help or other support well after relief operations end.

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