Saturday, September 03, 2005
Trash bags and plain old common sense (edited)
These suggestions apply to many disaster prone areas, but especially in places like New Orleans which everyone knew was very vulnerable.
1. What is so difficult about handing out many large, strong plastic bags for people to put trash and human waste in.
2. Prior to disasters, water, food, medical supplies and shallow draft aluminum boats (in flood threatened areas) should be pre-positioned in safe, secure, elevated places for emergencies.
3. Prior to disasters, pumps should be installed in well protected and elevated places with plenty of fuel.
4. Prior to disasters, people should be frequently informed as to the nearest and best places to go in emergencies and there should be food, water and medical supplies there.
5. Prior to disasters, vehicles with loud speakers should always be available for quick warnings.
6. Cheap radios should be distributed and a frequency designated for vital information broadcasts.
7. Prior to disasters, many trustworthy and screened individuals should be deputized and some even armed (with training) as a reserve force.
8. Prior to disasters, many folks should be trained in emergency first aid.
9. Prior to disasters, In threatened places like New Orleans, public service (PSA's) should be broadcast every month to inform, educate and motivate folks to be prepared with food, water, some clean dry clothes and basic first aid kits.
11. These are just a few of my own common sense ideas and I'm not even a "government official", who should have done these things. These simple, relatively inexpensive measures would be of immense value.
R M Chandler
¶ 2:07 PM
