May 22, 2006
New Yorkers Aren't Disaster-Ready
A survey from the Red Cross and NYU's Center for Catastrophe Preparedness & Response says that New Yorkers are not all that prepared for disasters. New Yorkers have thought about disasters, but haven't gone all the way:
- Half of New Yorkers polled have emergency supply kits, but many of these kits are incomplete;On the upside, 17% of people feel that they are more prepared than last year, so at least they feel good, even if they're going to be struggling in a waterlogged taxi. NY Times talks to a number of disaster preparedness experts, like Columbia's National Center for Disaster Preparedness director Dr. Irwin Redlener, who says recent disaster have "not wake-up calls, but more like snooze alarms, where we get aroused briefly and then drift back to sleep." Fine - you got us: Gothamist bought a handcrank radio at Radio Shack, but we still haven't Ziplocked any cash or credit cards...we have a "maybe we're going somewhere" bag.
- 63% of New Yorkers polled have an emergency plan, but rarely have they put their plan to a test run or practiced it;
- Many New Yorkers are taking preparedness steps in their homes, but few have all the necessary supplies.
- In the event of an evacuation, the majority of respondents (53%) are most likely to rely on cars or taxis to evacuate
- Fifty-eight percent of New Yorkers polled say they are prepared for an emergency that would require them to evacuate their homes and leave the immediate area for up to three days, yet 32 percent indicated that they don’t have emergency go bags ready with the necessary supplies to take with them.
Have you worked out a disaster plan? And did seeing what happened with Hurricane Katrina inspire you to actually create one? You can read the whole study here: Apparently Manhattan is the least prepared borough, while Queens is the most! The city on how to make a go bag and a funny post about what New Yorkers would do if disaster struck.
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I can barely fit my garbage can in my apartment, I don't know where I'd keep a large stash of emergency supplies. that's why manhattan is the least prepared...
The biggest issue is clean water... where do i store clean bottled water and lots of it?
Step 1. Swim to Governor’s Island.
Step 2. Subsist on hunting pigeons and squirrels.
Step 3. Profit!
During the 24-hour blackout, I watched a women fill a shopping basket with batteries (there were just a few left for the rest of us). She won't use them all as long as she lives.
During a burst water pipe at Bleeker & Carmine, a woman earnestly asked me how many 1 gallon bottles of spring water she'd need to have a bath. Yes, I told her that her building had a hot water tank so just go home and take the f*cking bath.
While visiting Austin, TX during hurricane Rita, the population of Austin panic-bought bottled water. As if this hill town was going to flood like coastal, below-sea-level New Orleans.
Now we learn that disaster preparedness means you have to get a bag ready with a hand full of common objects in it (ooh, comfy shoes, how WILL I find those?)
Did the world get a great deal more stupid in the last 5 years? Or is it just since I moved to this country?