LETTER: Are You Prepared for an Emergency?

Editor,

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CHECKED YOUR EMERGENCY SUPPLIES???

As an avid advocate of emergency preparedness, I thought I was fairly well prepared. I know that it is recommended to update your supplies on an annual basis, but I have let things go for a couple of years now.

Last night about 4 a.m. our electricity went out.  It took me several minutes to wake up and to remember that I had two flashlights beside my bed.  The next order of business was to find a battery or crank operated radio.  One radio was broken and I could not find the second!

I rummaged through my “Emergency / Earthquake Bin” and realized it was disorganized, had been liberally “borrowed” from by a son who went camping, and really needed an update.   (P.S. the earthquake bin is easily accessible and not in a closet. During the Northridge Earthquake all my supplies were in a closet whose inward opening door was jammed shut by falling contents.)

I did have (by my bed) an old-fashioned cord phone that did not depend on electricity to work.  I wanted to call LADWP but I did not have a telephone number.   

I called 311, but it only operates during the day, during the week!  This morning, after the electricity came on, I turned on the computer to retrieve the Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power contact and 24/7 emergency numbers (1-800-DIAL-DWP  Or 1-800-342-5397).  They had a recording to tell me what had happened and when the power was supposed to be restored.  How dependent we are on electricity!

Today is going to be spent cleaning up my “Emergency Bin”; buying a small, battery operated radio;  maybe more flashlights; check our “earthquake shoes” (under the bed) and putting copies of the contact numbers for DWP, SoCalGas, etc. in several places.

More information is available on FEMA, CAL EMA, LA City, and Red Cross websites.

Diana Dixon-Davis
Chatsworth Neighborhood Council
And
CNC Public Safety Committee