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he stereotype of a disaster prepper is that
of a man alone in the woods, hoarding
cans of baked beans and bullets to fend
off neighbors after the apocalypse.
Few may know, however, that the best
chances a community has for survival
come from working together and
looking after each other.
This information is particularly
compelling with the knowledge that
severe weather patterns are more likely
as rising global temperatures ravage our
normal ecology and shift local weather
patterns. Hot, dry summers increase the risk of wildfires,
and unpredictable, wet winters can lead to floods,
landslides and severe winter storms.
There are a number of considerable environmental
hazards to prepare for in Lane County, not to mention
the coming Cascadia subduction zone earthquake that
involves many similar preparations.
Matt McRae, the climate policy strategist for Our
Children’s Trust and a disaster mitigation expert says,
“We’re bound to have a major fire in the short term.”
The south hills of Eugene, McRae says, are full of
dry brush that will make for perfect fuel during wildfire
season. “Dozens of houses will go up in flames and
hopefully we won’t lose any lives, but that’s what’ll shake
us out of it.”
Other weather disasters include flooding which could
shut down our sewage system, severe winter storms like
the ice storm that left thousands without power for days,
and the potential for summer heat waves that harm human
health and safety without the scary pictures of destroyed
infrastructure. All of these will be more common and
more likely as global temperatures rise.
With so many in need after a disaster, citizens must rely
on themselves, not firefighters and emergency workers
who have too many others to attend to.
Disasters are frightening, but planning ahead can
help you avoid facing them alone. A 2002 study by
Eric Klinenberg, professor of sociology at New York
University, showed that communities with strong social
ties were more likely to survive environmental disasters
than those with weak ties. Klinenberg’s book, Heat Wave,
is a study comparing two similar neighborhoods during the
1995 Chicago heat wave that killed hundreds. Affluence
was a strong indicator of survival, but neighbors simply
checking on each other made the biggest difference in
survival rates.
McRae agrees with this assessment. “It’s really that
simple, the people in the connected neighborhood got help
because their neighbors asked after them.”
Patty Hine and Deb McGee of 350 Eugene can attest
to the power of community. During the ice storm this past
winter, their neighbors in Peaceful Valley near Spencer’s
Butte shared resources like power generators and made
sure to check on elderly, vulnerable neighbors.
“There’s a community of people out here who have a
loose but powerful connection to each other,” Hine says.
“We put aside all of our political difference and pull
together and it’s really wonderful that way.”
“I think it’s really important that people reconnect
to public institutions,” Hine adds. “Churches have
historically been the kinds of places where people make
these kinds of connections, but so are granges, Rotary
clubs and other institutions.”
It can also be as simple as sitting on your front porch
on a sunny day and saying hello to those who walk by with
their dogs. McRae says that “some of the rest of it is just
choosing to do social activities with people who are in
close proximity with you, like closing down the street and
having a neighborhood block party.”
If you’re a bit shy or need some structure, Eugene has a
few programs that can help you meet your neighbors and
prepare for disasters at the same time. Patence Winningham
is the emergency program coordinator for the city, and she
suggests Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)
training for those with a particular passion for preparation
and helping others.
The free, 30-hour training is held twice a year over
the course of a few weeks and prepares participants for
everything from fires to search and rescue to disaster
psychology. “We’ve trained over 1,500 community
members since the program started in 2003,” Winningham
says. That’s significant compared to the 174 firefighters
serving Eugene’s population of 160,541 who would be
bombarded with requests during a climate disaster.
If you don’t have 30 spare hours for the fall CERT train-
ing, the Map Your Neighborhood program is a free oppor-
tunity for communities to work together and think about
disaster planning. “It really heightens awareness and builds
resilience in those little pocket areas,” Winningham says.
Participants work through a program with 10-15 other
households and create a plan in case of emergency. They
also map out important resources and skills amongst their
neighbors, and figure out who has vulnerabilities that
need addressing.
McRae says, “You map the assets and go knock on doors
to find out where does the doctor in our neighborhood live,
who has the chainsaws, who has an extra pickup?”
It also protects the vulnerable. After doing the program,
McRae says “you know there’s an elderly couple here and
a family with a newborn over here, so now you’re attuned
to that.”
Tim Ingalsbee, executive director of Firefighters
United for Safety, Ethics and Ecology, participated in the
program in his neighborhood a few years ago.
After a disaster, Ingalsbee says, “communities and
neighborhoods will have to fend for themselves for some
time. Emergency services are going to be overwhelmed
and they won’t be able to come. They’ll do triage and might
go right past a flaming house to go to a higher priority.”
To prepare, Ingalsbee, whose child is involved in Our
Children’s Trust’s landmark climate lawsuit, created
a plan with his family for the moments right after an
emergency starts. Once he knows his family is secure, he
will go to an agreed upon meeting spot to get organized
with his neighbors. From there he can create rescue teams
to save missing neighbors.
He also has stockpiled a week’s worth of food and
water for each of his family members, and encourages his
neighbors to do the same.
“That whole doomsday prepper approach comes right
out of our hyper-individualistic culture,” he says. “The
only way we’ll make it through disasters is through a
collective, collaborative approach as a community.”
“What if we prepare for these disasters and they
never happen, is it a waste of time?” Ingalsbee asks.
“Absolutely not! It’s part of having a better lifestyle and
a happier community.” His own forays into mapping his
neighborhood led to communal potlucks and a community
garden — strengthened ties that increase quality of life
and can save lives during an emergency.
The biggest thing is to get started. Emergency program
coordinator Patence Winningham says starting your plan
at two minutes after a disaster is a great start — know
where your shoes and flashlights are. Then push that plan
out to two hours, then two days, then two weeks.
“Know your evacuation routes,” Winningham says,
and assess which disasters are most likely to harm you
and your community. Everyone needs to prepare for the
Cascadia earthquake event, she says, but those in the
south hills should plan for forest fires and those near the
river or Amazon creek can prepare for flooding.
Most of all, she says, talk to your neighbor. “It’s really
Joe across the street who can help you if your house is on
fire.”
City programs that help create resilient citizens are
helpful, but resilient infrastructure that won’t break even
during an earthquake, fire or flood is just as important.
McRae says a huge aspect of disaster preparation is
pressuring your local government to protect you and
prevent severe damage. “Youth have a moral authority
that I don’t have,” McRae says. “They can go to their
leaders and say ‘I need you to protect my future.’” ■
eugeneweekly.com • A pril 20, 2017
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