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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2016)
S moke S ignals APRIL 15, 2016 9 Membership briefed about Emergency Management By Dean Rhodes Smoke Signals editor EUGENE – “If you prepare for something, it won’t happen” was Tribal Emergency Operations Co- ordinator Jamie Baxter’s positive mantra to the membership as she briefed General Council on the Tribe’s Emergency Management program on Sunday, April 3, at the Valley River Inn. If true, Tribal planning for an emergency will keep the No. 1 nat- ural disaster threat in the United States from happening – a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake that could occur off the Pacific Ocean coast from northern California to southern British Columbia and probably cause billions of dollars of damage in western Washington and Oregon. Baxter encouraged Tribal mem- bers to prepare and plan ahead. If nothing else, she advised, create a family communication plan so that family members will know how to contact each other in the event of a massive earthquake that likely will bring down many bridges in Oregon and make travel difficult. “The biggest thing for people is, ‘Where is my family?’ ” Baxter said about her experience responding to natural disasters. Baxter joined the Tribe in March 2014 and has extensive real-world experience in emergency man- agement, serving at Ground Zero in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake and in American Samoa after the 2009 tsunami. She also worked in New Orleans and New Jersey following the Katrina and Sandy hurricanes, respectively. She said Oregon is not immune to modern-day disasters even though the last Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake occurred in 1700, be- fore European explorers and Lewis & Clark arrived in the homelands of Grand Ronde’s ancestors. There was the 1962 Columbus Day windstorm, the Spring Break quake of 1993, the Vernonia flood- ing of 1996 and the Woodburn bank disaster. “We don’t want to just respond, but to recover,” Baxter said. Baxter surveyed many of the things her depart- ment has accomplished in the last two years, from creating hazard mitiga- tion and emergency op- erations plans to holding Community Emergency Response Team train- ings to conducting active shooter drills to planning continuity of government operations. Currently, the Tribe is setting up a ham ra- dio station on the Trib- Photo by Dean Rhodes al campus and already Tribal Emergency Operations Coordinator Jamie has a satellite trailer Baxter briefed the general membership on the that can access Internet Tribe’s Emergency Management program during and phone should a re- the Sunday, April 3, General Council meeting gion-wide disaster occur. “If we have a cata- held at the Valley River Inn in Eugene. strophic earthquake, which is a biggest bombing in 2008. threat, everybody will be on their “Catastrophic events happen own island somewhere because every day and they impact people, your island will be defined by your all people,” Baxter said. “And life is bridges,” she said. “In addition to never the same after a catastrophe. you, we want our homes, our busi- We need to realize that we are all nesses and your culture to survive connected. For those of you who following an event. We want to get live in the Eugene and Springfield this up and running as quickly as area, they have strong emergency possible.” management programs here. So The Tribe will be participating what I would ask is that people get in a June 7-10 multi-state training involved with your local program. exercise called Cascadia Rising The only real successful programs that is a large planning event for are the ones that integrate com- a possible devastating region-wide munity partners, your community earthquake. A mass casualty event and your neighbors. … In order for will be held on the Tribal campus a program to be effective, it has to on June 9. be integrated into everyday life.” Although some attendees at the For example, Baxter said, count Eugene meeting do not live in the the number of bridges you cross Grand Ronde area, Baxter said during daily routines. They might Tribal emergency preparedness not be standing after a massive can help them as well. In addition earthquake. How will you pick up your children at daycare or get your medication? Baxter said the goal of the Tribe’s Emergency Management program is to create a resilient and prepared community that will get the Tribe and its businesses back up and running quickly after a natural to creating a family communication plan, she encouraged attendees to obtain disaster supply kits, stock up on essentials, including extra medication and pet food, secure furniture to walls and get involved in local organizations planning for natural disasters. “The bottom line is we all choose where we live,” Baxter said, adding that some people live in torna- do-prone areas and Oregonians must deal with the possibility of earthquakes. “My philosophy is that if you plan for it now, it will not happen. If it does happen, our preparedness actions will lessen the impact of the event, save lives and help us recover faster.” Baxter added there is now an e-mail for Tribal disaster events at incident.command@grandronde. org. “We are so lucky to have Jamie working for us with her experience and her knowledge,” said Tribal Council member Denise Harvey after the presentation. In other action, it was announced that the next General Council meeting will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, May 1, in the Tribal Com- munity Center in Grand Ronde. Debi Anderson, Russell Wilkin- son, Liz Leno, Shelly Winter and Leah Villa won the $50 door prizes and Jessica Wolpe, Eric Bernando and Pam Darcy won the $100 door prizes. Two necklaces created by Tribal Council member Jon A. George also were raffled off. George joined Tribal Culture Department employees Kathy Cole and Brian Krehbiel in performing the cultural drumming and singing to open the meeting. The meeting can be viewed on the Tribal website at www.grandronde. org, clicking on the News tab and then Video. Hello Community! We would like to invite you all to the Canoe meetings set for this year. When: May 14, June 12 Who: Those people interested in participating in Canoe Journey Time: 12-3pm (Lunch is provided) Where: Grand Ronde Tribal Gym Please contact Cristina Lara for more information 503.879.2040 Ad created by George Valdez
