/2010_Safety_Prep

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SAFETY 2010

PREPAREDNESS

Sponsored by: Special supplement published by the Kent Reporter, Renton Reporter, and Auburn Reporter

2010 Safety Preparedness: A User’s Guide, is designed to help residents and businesses prepare for flooding, earthquakes, fire, and winter conditions in the Green River Valley of South King County.

INSIDE THIS EDITION… King County gets ready ................................4 Was flood preparation worth cost? ..............6 Sandbags take a beating ............................10 User’s Guide ......................................... 11-14 Earthquakes: We’re surrounded ..................15 Preventing, surviving a fire........................16 CERT training .............................................18 kentreporter.com rentonreporter.com auburn-reporter.com

Publisher Polly Shepherd

Editor

Dean A. Radford

Contributers

Laura Pierce, Steve Hunter, Erick Walker, Robert Whale, Shawn Skager and Charles Cortes

Graphic Design

Andrea Murphy Kilpatrick & Julie Black

Cover Design Julie Black

A special publication published by the Kent Reporter, Renton Reporter, and Auburn Reporter

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All eyes will be on the weather forecast this fall and winter as forecasters are predicting a particularly wet and cold winter because of the weather phenomenon known as La Nina. Recently, Ted Buehner, warning coordinator for the National Weather Service, gave a weather briefing on La Nina and prospects for this winter’s weather at King County’s Emergency Operations Center in Renton. DEAN A. RADFORD, Renton Reporter

Name a disaster and it can happen in South King County

BY DEAN A. RADFORD dradford@rentonreporter.com

There’s one common theme in any natural disaster or extreme weather event: Life isn’t going to be the same for days or even weeks.

And, when it comes to natural disasters, South King County just doesn’t get a break.

Every natural calamity identified in a county hazards analysis could strike the region. The list is long: Floods, earthquakes, fires, severe storms, landslides, volcanoes and even a tsunami or more likely its inland cousin, the seche.

That’s not to mention the manmade ones, from an overturned freight train spilling hazardous materials in downtown Auburn to a terrorist attack on Sea-Tac Airport or the freeway system.

One disaster can lead to another.

The Nisqually earthquake in 2001 triggered a massive landslide into the Cedar River near Ron Regis Park in Renton. The debris is still there and an occasional log lets loose to head to downtown Renton. It’s likely a massive landslide on Mercer Island sent a seche toward what is now Renton centuries ago.

“We have to be aware of the cascading effects,” said Hillman Mitchell, executive director of the King County Emergency Services Department, of a natural disaster.

So while the disaster may change, the response stays the same: Prepare, gather emergency supplies and make a disaster plan.

At a minimum have the resources necessary to “We want to build survive without confidence that any outside help people can take for three days. care of themselves.”

Mitchell Hillman Mitchell, doesn’t want to executive director, scare people.

“We want to King County Emergency build confidence Services Department that people can take care of themselves,” he said.

He encourages neighborhoods to map what resources are available close to home, such as generators, that can be pressed into service until outside help arrives. Renton and other local cities have organized such efforts.

Cities offer Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) training to help residents and business people prepare for an emergency.

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

While individuals and businesses are doing that, local and regional governments are marshaling their resources to jointly respond to a widespread disaster.

The county’s Emergency Operations Center in Renton is the nerve center for the region’s response to major disaster, natural or otherwise. Cities typically have their own response centers, which are activated when there is a need to coordinate the efforts of several local departments to a disaster or severe weather.

But, in the case of flooding of the Green River Valley, King County and the Valley’s cities – Renton, Auburn, Kent and Tukwila – will activate their emergency response centers if one city decides to do so.

Such a threat knows no government boundaries.

The Valley cities are coordinating efforts to monitor the Green River levees 24 hours a day if the river’s flow reaches 9,000 cubic feet per second, which is a Stage 3 flood.

The county and cities are working together, too, to update emergency response and mitigation plans. Those plans basically address the threats identified in the analysis of hazards faced countywide.

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Metro Transit has plan in place to keep the buses running King County Metro Transit is ready to roll out its revised snow operations and customer communications plan, if the worst weather predicted hits.

And, as it prepares for snow and ice, Metro is asking bus riders to make their own preparations for winter travel.

“We had most of our improved plans in place last year, but we didn’t get the opportunity to test them because the weather was so mild,” said Metro General Manager Kevin Desmond. “Based on what we’re hearing about this coming winter, it appears we’ll have to put these plans into play and we want our customers to be ready, too.”

Already, more than 10,000 people have signed up for Metro’s popular Transit Alerts, and Desmond would like to see that number double by the end of the year.

Desmond said Metro has a three-pronged approach to operating bus service more reliably when snow and ice begins

King County utility worker Gavin Goheen and driver Don Smith unravel tire chains and inspecte them for imperfections in preparation for this winter season. Charles Cortes, Kent Reporter

to affect travel in King County. It starts with preparation, advances into rerouting buses, and finally – under the worst conditions – will significantly reduce service. If that happens, Metro will operate with an Emergency Service Network (ESN) that substantially

reduces the number of bus routes and only serves priority streets and highways where cities and other agencies have concentrated their snow clearing activities.

When snow begins to fall, Metro buses will go to snow routing as necessary given road

conditions in a broad geographic area. All bus routes are now assigned into one or more of seven geographic areas within King County. The service status of each area will be color coded and displayed on an online snow map.

If weather creates extremely dangerous driving conditions, Metro will reduce service down to the Emergency Service Network with about 70 routes operating on key corridors. The ESN is designed to be reliable in the worst weather or during a prolonged storm period, but customers will be advised to limit travel if possible.

Desmond is urging bus riders to make pre-season preparations.

Start by signing up for Transit Alerts for the bus routes you use most often. If any of those routes begin operating on snow routing – which means some streets and bus stops may be missed – Metro will send an alert to route subscribers. The alerts can be received as email or text messages.

Safety tips from Metro

FYI

• Sign up to receive Transit Alerts for the routes you use most often, www.kingcounty.gov/metro/signup • Check the print and online timetables for snow route maps, www.kingcounty.gov/metro • If the weather is bad, check the color-coded status map on Metro Online before you travel, www.kingcounty.gov/ metro/snow • Be patient. Buses are not always on schedule in snowy or icy conditions.

And, increased ridership during bad weather can result in crowded buses and a longer-than-usual wait on the phone for the Customer Information Office, 206-553-3000, • Head for bus stops on main arterials or at major transfer points such as parkand-ride lots, transit centers, or shopping centers.

• Riders should wait at bus stops at the very top or very bottom of hills.

More detailed information is available on Metro Online at: www.kingcounty.gov/metro.

Mike Dale, with the King County Roads Services Division, uncovers a pile of road salt; the county stores salt, sandbags, boulders and sand at its ‘pit’ in the Renton Highlands. Dean A. Radford, Renton Reporter Debbie Hakanson and Eric Smith install a snowplow on a utility truck during a practice run recently in preparation for this winter season. charles Cortes, Kent Reporter

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County gears up to battle winter This season, the King County Road Services Division will have about 13,000 cubic yards of sand, 600 cubic yards of salt and 45,000 gallons of anti-icing material stockpiled at 10 field offices throughout the county to battle winter weather.

King County is responsible for nearly 1,300 miles of snow routes linking cities, suburban and rural areas all across the county.

During a significant regional snowstorm, snow removal will focus primarily on major arterials and routes that carry the most traffic. Crews will likely have less ability to plow neighborhood streets and some roads in steep hilly areas may need to be closed if

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

snowfall is signifi- Snow, ice plan cant.

Given For information about the Road this poServices Division’s snow and ice plan, tential for visit: reduced www.kingcounty.gov/transportaroad tion/kcdot/Roads/RoadsMaintenance/ clearing, SnowAndIcePlan.aspx residents should familiarize themselves with King County’s snow plan, which this year includes three levels or “categories” that determine snow response.

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❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

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Millions Were the millions sunk into more OK’d the flood fight worth it? Yes to repair abutment

By LAURA PIERCE

lpierce@kentreporter.com

The heightened awareness of flood issues related to the Howard Hanson Dam is now in its second year.

That’s important to remember, if you’re talking about flood prevention in the Green River Valley basin.

King County and the cities of Kent, Renton, Auburn and Tukwila took their greatest flood-prevention steps last year, when the threat of a Green River flood reached as high as 1 in 3, thanks to a damaged abutment at the Howard Hanson Dam, which crippled the dam’s ability to hold back flood waters.

Fortunately, last winter was mild, and the region breathed a collective sigh of relief as it entered the spring largely unscathed.

But in the months leading up to that winter, the “The preparations county and cities from last year have poured as much prepared us for as $10 million into temporary being ready and flood-control doing everything measures, mostly we can to bolster in the form of our protection giant sandbags until the dam is permanently fixed.” and sand-filled containers placed Ben Wolters, Kent’s director of economic and along 26 miles of the river, community development mostly topping a pre-exising levee system.

Covered under black tarps, those sandbags and barriers have now become part of the scenery along the river.

They may look like permanent fixtures, but someday they will be gone and at additional expense.

Has it all been worth it?

“Absolutely,” said Ben Wolters, the city of Kent’s director of economic and community development. “No. 1, it improved our odds of avoiding a flood from 1 in 25 to 1 in 33 by the Army Corps (of Engineers) own estimation (although this year the odds have improved to 1 in 60.) It also provided an important measure of reassurance to the broad business and residential communities that we were doing everything we could to minimize the threat.

“That did well to cap the fear that was out there,” Wolters added. “It limited the number of businesses who moved elsewhere.”

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By STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com

The federal government and King County kicked in funds this year to help protect the cities of Kent, Auburn, Renton and Tukwila from Green River flooding.

Congress and President Obama approved in July $44 million for repairs to the Howard Hanson Dam as part of a $59 billion emergency supplemental spending bill.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will use that money for a two-year project to install more drains and extend the existing drainage tunnel to put the dam back at full capacity by 2012. The odds of flooding are 1 in 140 when the dam is fully operational.

But odds this year are at 1 in 60. Those odds are helped by the giant sandbags that stretch for 14 miles along the Green River from Auburn to Tukwila.

King Online County information spent about $125,000 this King County: www.kingcounty.gov/ fall to repair flood damaged Kent: www.ci.kent.wa.us/ bags along emergencymanagement the river, Renton: www.rentonwa.gov/ said Doug emergencies Williams, Auburn: www.auburnwa.gov/ spokesman emergency/disaster for the King Tukwila: www.ci.tukwila.wa.us/ County hhdam.html Department of Natural Resources and Parks, which oversaw the repairs.

“We inspected 14 miles of sandbags on the Green River,” Williams said.

Crews from King County and the cities placed more than 35,000 sandbags last year along the Green River to provide extra protection on top of the levees. The county and corps paid for most of the sandbags.

The City of Kent last year received $2.5 million from the King County Flood Control District and the County Council to help pay for the sand, sandbags and contractors. Kent also received $1.03 million from the Corps of Engineers to help pay for the empty giant and small sandbags.

The county used funds from the King County Flood Control District to pay for the repairs this year to the sandbags, Williams said. Vandals damaged most of the bags that had to be replaced.

Several bags were even set on fire.

FYI

Crews last fall placed super-sized sandbags on the trail along the Green River in Tukwila to help protect the vast retail and industrial area in the lower Green River Valley. dean a. Radford, Renton Reporter What’s more, that network of levee improvements will just need to be maintained this year, as opposed to building more infrastructure.

“The preparations from last year have prepared us for being ready and doing everything we can to bolster our protection until the dam is permanently fixed,” Wolters said.

Flood control in the Green River Valley is really a one-two punch: the

Howard Hanson Dam – which the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates to store excess storm water – and the lengthy system of earthen levees along the river, which increase the river channel’s ability to handle high water flows.

Both are needed in order to protect what is considered the second-largest warehouse area on the West Coast, as [ more WORTH IT page 7 ]

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

[ more millions page 7 ]

County, cities seeking reimbursement from federal government Renton’s needs different

[ Worth IT from page 6] well as a high-density urban area.

But even before Howard Hanson Dam emerged as a threat in 2009, the rivers’ levee system was raising question marks.

The Green River Flood Control District was organized in 2007, for the purpose of improving the system. In addition to administering the levees, which run through multiple cities and county lands, the district is a taxing district, bringing in funds to do the fixes, or to leverage financing.

“The levees are not in top shape – we’ve known that for a long time,” said Tom Bean, the district’s supervising engineer for the Green River basin. “The levees have their own problems over and above the (2009) problem.”

The giant sandbags and barriers actually aid the levees in multiple ways. First there is the obvious: they raise the height of levees by another three feet, giving the river channel greater capacity.

But they also protect the levees. Bean said the levees are not designed to be “topped,” (meaning to have flood water pour over the tops.) If that happens, he said, the entire structure of the levee segment would be threatened – “the river would just eat its way through rather quickly.”

If the levee is eaten through and destroyed, the flood damage would be severe.

“The supersacks were designed to give us any hope (the levees) could survive being overtopped,” Bean explained. “That’s the whole reason to keep those bags in place.”

Last year, working in concert with the cities of Kent, Auburn, Tukwila and Renton, the flood-control district was able to have the giant sandbags, also known by a trade name of Super Sacks, installed.

Using the cities as it would contractors, the district oversaw the bag placements, then reimbursed the cities what it had received from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for their efforts. Not all the cost was reimbursed, and the county and city are appealing FEMA’s decision on their costs.

Auburn’s share of work In the city of Auburn, Emergency Preparedness Manager Sarah Miller said the

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray announces last spring the $44 million she helped secure for emergency funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers needs to repair the Howard Hanson Dam. Mayors from Auburn, Renton and Tukwila stoood with Murray during the press conference.charles cortes, Renton Reporter city saw roughly $1.5 million in unreimbursed work.

“It went to construction, primarily,” Miller said, of the sandbag and barrier installation.

The city last year distributed approximately 83,000 sandbags to community members and installed approximately 31,000 linear feet of barriers and giant sandbags, combined.

“They’re there until the problem with the dam is fixed,” Miller said. “The Army Corps tells us this time next year the dam will be back up to capacity. We’re really hoping they’re right. We’re really pleased they’re going to be that quick.”

Kent stressed protection The City of Kent spent approximately $3 million on the giant sandbags, as well as smaller ones which it provided to residents.

About $700,000 of that work – funding

mainly aqua bladders to protect city facilities, signage, community mailings and the city’s Code Red phone-alert system - was not reimbursed by FEMA. The city also had several major floodeducation events for the public, connecting with hundreds, if not thousands of area residents at expo-style meetings in its ShoWare Event Center.

Issues over reimbursement don’t take away from the magnitude of what the city invested in, according to city officials.

“It was absolutely necessary, with the odds that we were facing last year, with a flood event that could have cost us millions and millions of dollars in damage,” said Mike Mactutis, environmental engineering manager for Kent. “The sandbags were the biggest step. The meetings were the secondbiggest step.”

In regard to this flood season, “The odds are quite a bit better this year,” he said. “But they’re not up where we want them to be.”

Downstream from Auburn and Kent and lacking levees, Renton’s situation differed from the other cities.

“We don’t have any levees in Renton,” said Preeti Shridhar, the city’s communications director. “The square footage of the area that potentially could be under water is very limited.”

That area, which Shridhar described as primarily industrial, is relatively small.

“We actually have the ability of contacting these businesses one on one and we did that,” Shridhar said. “We had training, workshops – a road show, if you will – providing them with resources and information.”

The greatest expense for Renton’s flood fight last year was a sandbagging machine, costing about $25,000, followed by the public outreach activities.

“A huge part of our focus has been the education and interacting one on one,” she said.

This year, the city is continuing in its outreach efforts, with preparedness classes offered out of Renton Technical College, called the “Preparedness Academy.”

Working together

Last year’s preparations did another important thing.

It brought four cities and a county together. That sense of a shared mission got government officials talking in a whole new way - going beyond the immediate needs of their jurisdictions. It culminated in a trip to Washington, D.C., where representatives of each lobbied federal officials hard – not only for the funds they needed but also for the money to ensure the fix to Howard Hanson Dam by the Army Corps of Engineers could be made in a timely manner.

“Now it’s a year later and we’ve made a lot of progress,” said Wolters, with the City of Kent. “We were successful with the Army Corps, and working as a statewide coalition led by the governor and the county executive...were able to help secure the $44 million for the fix to restore the dam to its level of flood prevention.

“It was largely a collaborative success.”

King County has $250,000 set aside in a contingency fund [ MILLIONS from page 6] King County has set aside a flood emergency contingency fund of about $250,000 for this winter.

“That can be used if something unravels on us this winter,” Williams said in an e-mail. “If something so severe did occur, however, we would likely be in a declared emergency, which would make additional

resources available to us; the point being that our repairs in an emergency situation would not be limited by available funding.”

The King County Flood Control District manages 500 flood-control facilities throughout the county. The district is funded by a property-tax assessment of 10 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation.

Kent city officials put $1 million in a flood emergency fund last year and plan

to do the same in the 2011 budget in case extra funds are needed to fight flooding.

City officials from Kent, Auburn, Renton and Tukwila continue to work with the county to make sure residents prepare in case a heavy winter storm causes Green River flooding.

King County Executive Dow Constantine sent out a letter in late October to 35,000 Green River Valley residents and

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

property owners to remind them to get ready and stay ready for a risk of flooding, especially with predictions by meteorologists for a La Nina weather pattern, which means a colder and wetter winter than normal.

“We urge you to prepare a flood safety plan and an emergency kit for your family, sign up for automated flood alerts, and buy or renew flood insurance,” the letter said.

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❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

Boeing maintains protective barriers For most businesses best protection when the water creeps in is flood insurance.

the joint unFlood derwriting agreement. insurance But he reTo learn about National iterated that Flood Insurance Program: www. the goal is floodsmart.gov to make that To learn about supplemental supplemenflood insurance: www.surplus tal insurance lines.org. available, and that businesses can continue to apply, especially being on the cusp of another flood season.

The threat of a flood is now 1 in 60 – better than it was last year, but still higher than the 1 in 140 chance that the region would normally see, if the Howard Hanson Dam was functioning at full capacity.

“We just want to make sure everyone who wants insurance can get it,” Hope said. “I think it’s going to pick up.”

He suggested that more businesses perhaps have been able to get that private insurance on the open market this year.

“It’s certainly gotten better than a year ago,” he said.

FYI

By LAURA PIERCE lpierce@kentreporter.com

When the threat of flooding in the Green River Valley was exacerbated in 2010 by the damage to the Howard Hanson Dam, the Boeing Co. opted not to take any chances.

The company took stock of its most critical sites in the valley – its Space Center in Kent (home to a central regional communication center, numerous defense programs and a major data center) and its customer-training facility in Renton (houses state-of-the art simulators for customers’ pilots) – and built a fortress of flood protection for both.

Today those sites remain surrounded by what are known as HESCO barriers - containers made of welded steel, covered with a durable lining and filled with earth and gravel. Once used to shore up levees in Louisiana when Hurricane Katrina hit and now used frequently to protect military installations because of “It’s well worth the their bullet-stopping investment because abilities, the barriers are Boeing’s line of we’re protecting our people and our defense from Green property.” Cindy Wall, River flood waters.

While the aeroBoeing Co. spokeswoman space company won’t reveal information how much all that protection costs, it does acknowledge that it’s money well-spent.

“It’s well worth the investment, because we’re protecting our people and our property,” said Boeing spokeswoman Cindy Wall, noting the barriers protect thousands of Boeing employees at those facilities, as well as the many vendors and customers with whom the aerospace giant works.

Having done the heavy lifting last year in terms of protection, this year the company is in maintenance mode with the barriers.

“All we’ve been doing this season is going back through and checking,” Wall said of work on the barriers. But, she added, “We do have other sandbags stored in case we need more.”

Boeing is just one example of businesses in the Green River Valley taking precautions when it comes to the threat of floods.

For other businesses, Super Sacks (giant sandbags which are then covered with a black, protective tarp) and regular sandbags have been the preferred method of ensuring some respite, if flooding happens.

While the HESCO barriers provide

HESCO barriers filled with rock, dirt and sand were installed last fall around the Boeing Co.’s customerservices facility at Longacres. celeste gracey, Renton Reporter physical protection to business facilities, flood-insurance is the financial barrier to losses sustained when flood water creeps in.

Last year, the limits of that insurance became clear to business owners, who found themselves stuck between two places: the National Flood Insurance Program, which limited reimbursement of their losses to $500,000, and supplemental private insurance coverage for costs beyond the initial $500,000 level, which was either extremely difficult to obtain or unaffordable.

The picture appears brighter this year as far as flood insurance. Thanks to legislation passed earlier this year, the state insurance commissioner can create a joint underwriting association this flood season, if businesses aren’t able to get that supplemental flood insurance.

“The coverage wouldn’t be cheap, but at least it would be available,” Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler said in an earlier news story about the legislation.

Several companies in the region have since taken advantage of that legislation, to apply for a quote on the supplemental insurance.

“Every application sent in has received a quote,” said Robert Hope, executive director of Surplus Line, a non-profit corporation which is operating as an administrator to the joint-underwriting program that the Legislature established.

“The bad news is that only four have been sent in,” he added, of applications for supplemental flood insurance under

Kent Reporter Editor Laura Pierce can be reached at 253-872-6600, ext. 5050.

IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, NOW HOW TO BE NOTIFIED IN AUBURN (cut out this list and keep with your emergency information)

City of Auburn website (www.auburnwa.gov)

Auburn Alert/Code Red (reverse 911) In the event of an emergency, the city can call you with important emergency information. System can also send email and text message alerts. Sign up at www. auburnwa.gov or call 253-8761925.

Follow us on Twitter (@coaupdates)

Emergency email notification directly from the City Sign up at www. auburnwa.gov

Regional Public Information Network (RPIN) Sign up to recieve email or text messages from local, regional agencies at www.rpin. org Battery powered NOAA Weather Radio Can be purchased at most stores that sell electronics Local television and radio stations

Auburn Community Radio (AM 1700) Auburn Government Access Television (Comcast channel 21)

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

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Sandbags take a beating from sun, vandals, vehicles

BY ERICK WALKER

ewalker@kentreporter.com

Fire destroyed some.

Others were sliced open, baked in the hot summer sun or were struck by moving vehicles.

As the rainy season descended upon the Kent Valley this fall, however, one thing remained clear: The sandbags that were put in place a little more than a year ago to protect against potential flooding of the Green River needed repair.

“There are 12 miles of river within the City of Kent,” explained Mike Mactutis, city environmental engineering manager.

“We had (to replace) a lot of the smaller sandbags that hold the (bigger) bags down.

A lot of the (smaller) bags deteriorated over the summer. The two main items we had to replace were due to vandalism and deterioration from the sun.”

Of course, a handful of the giant sandbags that line much of the Green River were struck by moving vehicles, while vandalism destroyed several others.

King County maintenance crews spent September inspecting and fixing those sandbags that were in dire need of repair.

“There was a section of 15 (large sandbags) in Tukwila that got set on fire,” said John Koon, who is the maintenance lead in King County. “Some of the sandbags, in the course of putting them in, were stretched out and damaged. We also patched 1,066 of them that had knife cuts or other little bits of damage.”

Along the path of the Green River, there are more than 35,000 sandbags. Of those, 134 of the large sandbags had to be replaced by hand, while 25 others were replaced by machine. In addition, up to 37,000 of the smaller sandbags that are used as reinforcement and to pin down the larger sandbags either were replaced or added. Of the larger sandbags, 1,225 were completely replaced.

“Of all the patches that were done, I would say a quarter were patched due to vandalism,” Koon said. “Another half dozen were hit by cars.”

The lifespan of the protective measures vary depending on weather, location and size of the bag. The smaller sandbags are primarily used for filling cracks between larger sandbags and pinning down tarps to keep barriers secure.

“The smaller bags, if they’re out in the

Washington Conservation Corps’ Jeff Shane, Ashlie Arthur and Ngoc Tran, from left, prop up a “Super Sack” to refill with sand after replacing a damaged sandbag along the Green River Trail in September. CHARLES CORTES, Kent Reporter file photo

sun, will be lucky to last a year,” Mactutis noted. “The bigger plastic sandbags can last quite a bit longer.”

The bags will continue to line the Green River and adjacent areas until the threat of a flood is over.

“When they tell us the (Howard Hanson) Dam is completely fixed, they will be removed,” Mactutis said. “Right now, they’re telling us we have a two-year window.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees operations of the Hanson

dam, has lowered the threat of Green River flooding this winter to 1 in 60 from 1 in 33 last year because of installation of a grout curtain. But the odds of flooding are 1 in 140 when the dam is fully operational. All of the additional repairs to put the dam at that level are not expected to be completed until 2012.

That said, the sandbags are ready for whatever rain the current season brings.

“I think we’re about as beefed up as we can be,” Koon said.

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❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

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User’s Guide

INSIDE:

• Green River Evacuation Route Map • Need to Know Numbers and Websites

How to Prepare for an Emergency A major disaster will disrupt lives, businesses, jobs and travel. Families could become separated, although in the case of a major flood, warnings would come several hours before it reaches your home or business.

Emergency directors urge that individuals, families and businesses prepare a plan for major winter weather, flooding, earthquakes, fire or other disasters. Here are some tips and resources.

IN GENERAL

Designate two meeting places: just outside your home, and outside your neighborhood if you can’t return home.

Know the addresses and phone numbers for both places.

Keep extra hearing aid batteries in your emergency kit.

Store pens and paper for communicating with emergency responders if you are without a hearing aid or an interpreter.

Out-of-area contact: Find a friend or family member at least 100 miles away to be your family’s contact person. All household members should have this number and contact this person in a disaster.

Store a lightweight, manual wheelchair if possible.

Keep your car filled with gas.

Keep a three-day supply of medications and oxygen (if used) on hand.

Buy flood insurance. Review your insurance policy for endorsements for back-up of sewers and drains.

Take photos or video of all valuables in your home.

Move heirlooms and irreplaceable items to upper floors or attic where they will be safer from flood waters.

Secure your water heater above your potential flood level.

PROTECT YOUR KIDS

Know your child’s school or daycare disaster plan.

Update your child’s emergency contact information.

Teach your child when and how to call 9-1-1.

Have your child memorize the address and phone number of the designated family meeting place.

PROTECT SENIORS, DISABLED Set up a buddy system to check on one another in the event of an emergency or arrange for someone to check on you.

If you use a cane, keep extras in your emergency kit, and secured locations at work, home and school.

Keep a pair of heavy gloves in your emergency kit to use for wheeling over glass or debris.

Prepare a medication list with the names, dose, frequency and the name of the prescribing doctor.

PROTECT YOUR PETS

Find a place outside of the disaster area for your pet. Consider emergency pet shelters, veterinary clinics, friends or relatives’ houses.

Keep a sturdy leash or carrier in your emergency kit. Also keep photos of pets to help identify and prove ownership.

PREPARE YOUR CAR

Keep an emergency kit in your car.

Include a tool kit, a windshield scraper or brush, and extra food, water and clothing.

STAY INFORMED, CONNECTED

In King County, listen to radio news stations (like KIRO 97.3 FM, KOMO 97.7 FM, and KOMO 1000 AM). They can supply you with detailed emergency information.

Sign up for phone or email alerts through your city. These services are known as Reverse 911 and often go by the name CodeRED.

Be sure every member of your family knows the phone number and has a cell phone, coins, or a prepaid phone card to call the emergency contact.

Emergency Kit Checklist Basic Kit ❏ Water (at least one gallon per person per day for at least 3 days) ❏ Food for at least 3 days per person (choose non-perishables that are lightweight and don’t require refrigeration or cooking) ❏ Flashlight ❏ Extra batteries To be better prepared, add: ❏ One complete change of warm clothing including sturdy shoes and rain gear ❏ Battery powered radio ❏ Whistle ❏ First aid kit

Teach family members how to use text messaging. Text messages can often get around network disruptions when a phone call might not be able to get through.

❏ Medications

GET TRAINED

To be well prepared, add: ❏ Photocopies of medical insurance cards, insurance policies, IDs, birth certificates

Learn basic first aid, CPR and other safety training through an organization such as the American Red Cross. www. seattleredcross.org/

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Make sure you or someone in your family knows how to turn off your utilities such as electricity, water and gas.

Ensure the frame of your house is bolted to the foundation.

Conduct a home hazard hunt to minimize damage to your home and to people who may be inside your home during a disaster.

PRACTICE AND REVIEW

Practice your evacuation plan twice a year. Drive your planned evacuation route and plot alternate routes on a map in case main roads are impassible or gridlocked.

❏ Blanket ❏ Entertainment items (cards, crossword puzzles, books, toys for children)

❏ Extra eyeglasses, hearing-aid batteries, wheelchair batteries ❏ NOAA weather radio ❏ Dust mask ❏ Cash (preferably in smaller denominations) ❏ Sanitation supplies (toilet paper, soap, feminine supplies, toothpaste, diapers) ❏ Duct tape ❏ Tools: pliers, wrench, utility knife ❏ Paper and pens or pencils ❏ Emergency out-of-area contact phone numbers ❏ Map of city and state ❏ Copy of your disaster plan and emergency contact numbers ❏ Work gloves ❏ Waterproof matches ❏ Compass

BUILD A DISASTER KIT

Put together your own disaster kit or purchase a disaster kit. Either way, your disaster kit should contain essential supplies to see you through a minimum of three days. It should be checked and updated every six months.

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

❏ ABC-type fire extinguisher ❏ Manual can opener ❏ Plastic trash bags for trash ❏ Extra house keys and car keys

PAGE

11

37th St NW

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Pierce County

King County

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Dangerous conditions exist. You should be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice. You will hear specific information about when to leave and the routes that you should take. You should expect that roads will be congested. This may be the only notice you receive.

You are ordered to leave immediately. You will hear specific information about routes to take. If you choose to ignore this order, understand that emergency personnel will not be able to assist you.

Lake Youngs

n B la c k D i a m

Flooding is occurring or will soon occur. If advised to evacuate, do so immediately.

Flood warning:

Flooding is possible. Stay tuned to NOAA radio, commercial radio or television for additional information.

Flood watch:

A weather condition that is less serious than a warning.

This event may cause significant inconvenience and if caution is not exercised, it could lead to situations that may threaten life or property.

Advisory:

Flood terms to know

The information included on this map has been compiled by King County staff from a variety of sources and is subject to change without notice. King County makes no representations or warranties, express or implied, as to accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or rights to the use of such information. This document is not intended for use as a survey product. King County shall not be liable for any general, special, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages including, but not limited to, lost revenues or lost profits resulting from the use or misuse of the information contained on this map. Any sale of this map or information on this map is prohibited except by written permission of King County.

Conditions are severe. You and your family should prepare to evacuate. Now is a time for people with special needs or those who need time, to leave the area.

Also, it is time to move mobile property, business equipment and livestock.

Level 3: Evacuation order

4

Data Sources: Standard King County datasets used include: trans_network, wtrcrs, wtrbdy, city Roads datasets used include: KCROADS.RSDLib.EVACUATIONROUTES

Emergency officials will use three levels to notify you of the need to evacuate.

Know what these terms mean and what actions you need to take.

Level 2: Evacuation request

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For City of Auburn Evacuation Map, go to: www.auburnwa.gov/disaster Search for Lahar Evacuation Routes

City of Auburn Evacuation Sign

For City of Tukwila Evacuation Map, go to: www.ci.tukwila.wa.us/hhdam.html

For City of Renton Evacuation Map, go to: www.rentonwa.gov/emergencies/default.aspx?id=26157

For City of Kent Evacuation Map, go to: www.ci.kent.wa.us/emergencymanagement/index. aspx?id=14174

For King County’s Evacuation Map, go to: www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/Flooding.aspx

Evacuation Signs for King County, City of Kent, City of Renton, City of Tukwila

ENUMCLAW

Department of Transportation Road Services Division

MAPLE VALLEY

0.5

October 29, 2010

WSDOT / city coordinated evacuation routes

WSDOT evacuation routes

Evacuation routes in cities

Unincorporated King County evacuation routes

GREEN RIVER FLOOD EVACUATION ROUTES

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Level 1: Evacuation alert

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15th St N W

Maple St

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NUMBERS/WEBSITES TO KNOW

EMERGENCY CONTACT CARD

KENT

Out of area contact information:

Name (print): _______________________________________________ Phone number (with area code): _______________________________________________ Cell phone number (with area code): _______________________________________________ Text messages may be possible with your cell phone.

Disaster meeting place (outside of our neighborhood): _______________________________________________ Meeting place (in our neighborhood): _______________________________________________ In case of local emergency, contact: ___________________________________________________________

Fold and keep with you at all times.

Better yet, memorize this information too!

✁

Key Websites 3 days, 3 ways www.3days3ways.org

Learn tips and access checklists and resources for preparing for emergencies and disasters.

Take Winter By Storm www.takewinterbystorm.org

Information for getting prepared and staying informed when bad weather strikes.

American Red Cross www.seattleredcross.org/

In a disaster, the American Red Cross responds with food, shelter and hope.

Regional Public Information Network www.rpin.org One-stop resources for news alerts from more than 75 government, transportation, utility, health and emergency response agencies serving citizens in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

King County Regional Flood Preparedness www.kingcounty.gov/safety/FloodPlan.aspx

Kent Emergency Management: 253-856-4440 www.choosekent.com

14

www.rpin.org

Social Media

www.twitter.com/kcalerts

CodeRED Emergency Notification System (reverse 911): sign up online at www.kentCodeRED.com

Sewage Overflows

CodeRED Emergency Notification System: Sign up by phone at 253-856-4440, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. to request a registration form by mail.

Metro Transit disruptions

RENTON

Emergency Management: 425-430-7000 CodeRED Emergency Notification System (reverse 911): sign up online at rentonwa.gov (click on Emergencies tab) Code RED Emergency Notification System: Sign up by phone at 425-430-7000, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., to request a registration form by mail.

www.kingcounty.gov/SewageSpills www.kingcounty.gov/metro

King County Road Alert

www.kingcounty.gov/roadalert

King County Road Alerts

http://gismaps.kingcounty.gov/roadalert/ An e-mail subscription service

AUBURN

Hazardous Waste Disposal

E-mail: emergencyprep@auburnwa.gov

206-296-4692 www.govlink.org/hazwaste

Emergency Management: 253-876-1925 Website: www.auburnwa.gov/disaster

(home or business)

Auburn Alert: (register for telephone or email alerts) www.auburnwa.gov/Emergency/disaster/Auburn_ Alert.asp

Public Schools Emergency Communications System

COVINGTON

FEDERAL SERVICES

Emergency Preparedness: www.ci.covington.wa.us/departments/ emergencypreparedness.cfm.

Sign up for e-alerts, get emergency updates: www. ci.covington.wa.us

MAPLE VALLEY

Emergency Information at: www.ci.maple-valley.wa.us/emergency.asp

TUKWILA

Emergency Services: 206-433-0179 Website: www.ci.tukwila.wa.us/ click on the “Howard Hanson Dam Flood Watch Information” box at the top of the page to sign up for the Flood Watch eList, to receive the latest information by e-mail.

Flood Information line at 206-431-2186

www.govlink.org/hazwaste

National Flood Insurance Program 888-379-9531 www.floodsmart.gov

Federal Emergency Management Agency www.fema.gov (Click on Flooding)

National Weather Service Forecast Office www.wrh.noaa.gov/sew/

National Weather Service Northwest River Forecast Center www.nwrfc.noaa.gov/

TRAVEL FORECASTS SeaTac Airport

Additional information can be found on Public Access www.portseattle.org/seatac/ Channel 21 and AM 1640.

State highway real-time road and weather information

REGIONAL SERVICES

King County Flood Warning System

www.kingcounty.gov/environment/waterandland/ flooding/warning-system.aspx Look up real-time river levels and flow data for the Snoqualmie River, Tolt River, Skykomish River, Raging River, Issaquah Creek, Cedar River, Green River, and White River and learn what local flooding homeowners might expect at different flood phases based on past flood events. This site also links to alerts and warnings from the National Weather service and provides maps of rivers and creeks.

www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/

Mountain pass reports

www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/

Washington state weather information

www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/weather/default.aspx

Washington state travel alerts

www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/trafficalerts/default.aspx

TRAVEL INFORMATION

206-296-4535 or 800-768-7932

Dial 511 • Puget Sound traffic conditions • Mountain pass conditions • Weather • Connection to Oregon’s 511 system

King County Flood Warning Information line

King County traffic cameras

King County Flood Warning Center 206-296-8200 or 800-945-9263

PAGE

Regional Public Information Network

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

http://your.kingcounty.gov/kcdot/mycommute/ default.aspx

FYI

BEFORE AN EARTHQUAKE • Repair defective electrical wiring, leaky gas lines, and inflexible utility connections. Get appropriate professional help. Do not work with gas or electrical lines yourself.

• Bolt down and secure to the wall studs your water heater, refrigerator, furnace, and gas appliances. If recommended by your gas company, have an automatic gas shut-off valve installed that is triggered by strong vibrations.

• Place large or heavy objects on lower shelves.

Fasten shelves, mirrors, and large picture frames to walls. Brace high and top-heavy objects.

• Store bottled foods, glass, china and other breakables on low shelves or in cabinets that fasten shut.

• Anchor overhead lighting fixtures.

• Be sure the residence is firmly anchored to its foundation.

• Install flexible pipe fittings to avoid gas or water leaks. Flexible fittings are more resistant to breakage.

• Hold earthquake drills with your family members: Drop, cover, and hold on!

• Locate safe spots in each room under a sturdy table or against an inside wall. Reinforce this information by moving to these places during each drill.

DURING AN EARTHQUAKE • Minimize your movements during an earthquake to a few steps to a nearby safe place. Stay indoors until the shaking has stopped and you are sure exiting is safe.

• If indoors, take cover under a sturdy desk, table, or bench or against an inside wall, and hold on. If there isn’t a table or desk near you, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building. Stay away from glass, windows, outside doors and walls, and anything that could fall, such as lighting fixtures or furniture.

• If in bed when the quake strikes, stay there, hold on and protect your head with a pillow, unless you are under a heavy light fixture that could fall.

In that case, move to the nearest safe place.

• Use a doorway for shelter only if it is in close proximity to you and if you know it is a strongly supported, load-bearing doorway.

• If outdoors, stay there. Move away from buildings, streetlights, and utility wires.

• In a moving vehicle stop as quickly as safety permits and stay in the vehicle. Avoid stopping near or under buildings, trees, overpasses, and utility wires.

AFTER AN EARTHQUAKE • Be prepared for aftershocks. These secondary shockwaves are usually less violent than the main quake but can be strong enough to do additional damage to weakened structures.

• Open cabinets cautiously. Beware of objects that can fall off shelves.

• Stay away from damaged areas unless your assistance has been specifically requested by police, fire, or relief organizations.

• Be aware of possible tsunamis if you live in coastal areas. Stay away from the beach.

• Inland tsunamis, called seches, are possible in land-locked bodies of water.

SOURCE: University of Washington Seismology Lab

Region is surrounded by sources of earthquakes

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By DEAN A. RADFORD dradford@rentonreporter.com

There are numerous sources of earthquakes in the region and any one could set loose a shaker that would rock South King County.

It’s just a matter of time, and not that far off.

Three of those sources are the Seattle Fault, the Tacoma Fault and the Whidbey Island Fault.

“You put them all together and you’re pretty much surrounded,” said Bill Steele, the director of information services for the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington.

The most recent memorable earthquake was the 6.8 magnitude Nisqually earthquake that hit on Feb. 28, 2001. That was a deep quake at 31 miles; there’s an 84 percent chance that such a quake will happen again within 50 years.

The continuing movement of the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate under the North American plate, known as the Cascadia subduction zone, can produce large quakes. There’s a roughly 14 percent chance that such a deep quake will occur within the next 50 years, according to Steele.

Small quakes occur more often, always without the destructive force of a deep quake like the Nisqually, which caused about $2 billion in damage.

The Seattle Fault is in the earth’s crust and could break under Renton, according to Steele.

There’s a 7 percent chance a quake will occur along the fault within 50 years.

All quakes, no matter the source, can cause soil to liquefy, known as liquefaction, which is more likely on valley floors , such as the Green River Valley. As a result of the Nisqually quake, some building codes were strengthened.

Substantial ground movement occurred in Renton during the Nisqually quake, according to Steele. The quake trigged a landslide into the Cedar River that altered the river’s flow. The quake also triggered the “red tagging” of a Boeing building, meaning it was unsafe, according to Steele, even though it was built to meet existing building codes.

Businesses learned from that quake, which included attaching such critical equipment as computer servers in racks at Boeing facilities, he said.

“You can’t prevent the earthquake,” Steele said. “But you can prevent the damage.”

As part of quake preparedness, officials have continued to install equipment in the county to monitor ground motion in a quake. Those stations include some in private homes, organized through the NetQuakes project.

There are monitoring instruments in Kent and Renton. Monitoring of the State Route 167 corridor has been emphasized, because of a lack of monitoring stations to track ground motion.

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15

Easy steps to prevent a fire

By ROBERT WHALE

Deputy Fire Marshal Larry Upton with the Valley Regional Fire Authority conducts a routine inspection. courtesy/ Valley Regional Fire Authority

die in home fires have no working smoke alarms. The most common cause for non working smoke alarms is missing, disconnected or dead batteries.

It is also important to draw a home fire escape plan and practice it before a fire happens. Make sure the plan includes a gathering place for your family should a fire break out, because there will be no time to think in those precious moments, only the need to get out and fast.

Candles left unattended cause nearly 9,000 fires

Facts about smoke alarms

nationwide every year. You may reduce your risk of fire from candles by trimming the wicks to one quarter inch before lighting, keeping your candles at lest three feet from anything combustible and putting them in sturdy glass, ceramic or metal containers.

If you plan to use an electric space heater, make sure it carries the mark of an independent testing lab such as Underwriters Laboratory (UL). Always place the heater on a hard surface, preferably a non-

FYI

• Smoke alarms should be installed in every sleeping room, outside each separate sleeping area and on every level of the home, including basements.

• An ionization smoke alarm is generally more responsive to flaming type fires.

• A photoelectric smoke alarm is generally more responsive to smoldering fires.

• When extra time is needed to awaken or assist others, both types of alarms are recommended.

• Choose smoke alarms that have the label of a recognized testing laboratory.

• Test smoke alarms at least once a month using the test button.

• Make sure everyone in the home understands the warning of the smoke alarm and how to respond.

• Dust or vacuum smoke alarms annually or whenever the battery is changed. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning.

• Smoke alarms with non-replaceable (long-life) batteries are designed to remain effective for up to 10 years.

• If a long-life battery operated smoke alarm chirps, warning the battery is low, replace the entire smoke alarm right away.

• For smoke alarms with any other type of battery, replace batteries at least once a year or when the alarm chirps.

• Replace smoke alarms if they are more than 10 years old or sooner if they do not respond properly when tested.

6

PAGE 1

FYI

Fires in homes are most often caused by cooking accidents, smoking or unsafe use of woodstoves or space heaters. Here are some things you can do to avoid a home fire or protect yourself during a fire.

rwhale@auburnreporter.com

Most of us live in homes or apartments that can catch fire, surround ourselves with combustible things and use fire, electric or gas heat to warm our bodies and cook our meals.

But pots left on the stove, poorly used heaters, electrical fires, smoldering ashes in a couch cushion and fireplace ashes on a carpet – each can be the title page to tragic volumes.

With autumn here and winter coming on fast, experts have a few things to say about fireproofing a home for the months ahead to keep safe everthing that is most precious.

No. 1, pay attention to your smoke alarm. If you have a smoke alarm, make sure it has batteries and works. If you don’t have one, go get one.

Smoke alarms have been proven to be the difference between life and death in many fires.

National Fire Protection Association statistics show that working smoke alarms cut the chance of dying in a fire nearly in half.

Data from the NFPA shows that many homes are equipped with smoke alarms, but they are poorly maintained, and in many cases don’t work at all. Roughly two-thirds of all people who

Fire prevention

Creating a safe zone

combustible surface. Plug the heater directly into an outlet, never into an extension cord. Never cover the electrical cord with a rug or carpet. Keep the heater away from drapes, chairs, carpets or anything that can catch fire. Allow three feet of clear space on all sides.

Make sure a licensed chimney sweep inspects your chimney every year. Burn well-seasoned hardwood in your fireplace or woodstove.

Home fires and carbon monoxide leaks are more common in the winter.

LOREM FYI IPSUM

Tips for creating a safe zone around your home to keep fire from spreading: • Begin by creating a 30-foot, fire-safe zone around your entire home by clearing the area of leaves, brush, evergreen cones, dead limbs and fallen trees.

• Store combustibles, such as fuel, firewood and other debris, away from the house.

• Clean your roof and gutters regularly – tinder-dry needles and limbs easily catch fire.

• If you have a chimney, install a spark arrester.

• Remove vines from the walls of the house.

• Where possible, move shrubs and other landscaping away from the sides of the house.

• Prune branches and shrubs within 15 feet of chimneys and stove pipes • Remove tree limbs within 15 feet of the ground • Avoid using bark and wood chip mulch close to your home.

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

PROTECTING AGAINST FIRES • Install smoke detectors in or near all sleeping areas and on every level of your home, including the basement. Check smoke detectors on a regular basis and replace the batteries twice yearly.

• Have A-B-C type fire extinguishers. Teach family members how to use them.

• Know the location of all exits including windows. If you live in an apartment, count the number of doorways between your apartment and the two nearest exits.

• Know two ways out of every room in case smoke or flames block your primary exit.

• Have an escape plan and practice it with your family. This will help ensure you can get out quickly when there is no time for mistakes.

• Use alternative heat sources, such as woodstoves or space heaters, safely.

• Never use gas ovens, gas ranges, barbecues, or most portable or propane heaters for indoor heating.

• Have fire-fighting materials available: dry powder, fire extinguisher, heavy tarp or blanket, and water.

• Before using an alternative heat source, read the manufacturer’s instructions.

• Do not smoke in the bedroom, on the couch or anywhere you might fall asleep while smoking.

• Sleep with your bedroom door closed.

• Make sure your house number is clearly visible from the street and that fire trucks can reach your home.

IF FIRE STRIKES • If there is a fire — evacuate. Do not go back inside. Call 9-1-1 from a neighbor’s house.

• Never use water on an electrical fire.

• Smother oil and grease fires in the kitchen with baking soda or salt, or put a lid over the flame if it is burning in a pan.

• If caught in smoke — drop to your hands and knees and crawl; breathe shallowly through your nose and use your blouse, shirt or jacket as a filter.

• If you must move through flames — hold your breath, move quickly, cover your head and hair, keep your head down and close your eyes as much as possible.

• If your clothes catch fire, “stop, drop and roll” until the fire is out.

• Roll out of bed and crawl to the door. Feel the door for heat.

• If the door is cool, open it slowly. If you don’t see fire or thick smoke, crawl to your exit. If the door is hot, don’t open it. Stuff blankets into the crack of the door to keep out smoke; crawl to your window.

• Open your window and push out the screen.

Go out through your window if you can safely reach the ground. Go to your family meeting place. If you can’t exit safely, shout for help out of your window.

Use a light-colored piece of clothing or a sheet for a signal.

• Be sure all family members are accounted for. If someone is missing, let the fire department know.

Source: Washington State Department of Health

In bad weather, slow down or stay home REPORTER STAFF

With winter snow already falling in Washington’s mountain passes and the high probability of La Niña bringing snow and ice to the lower Puget Sound elevations, the time is now to prepare yourself and your car for winter driving conditions.

According to the Washington State Department of Transportation and the Washington State Patrol, the key to winter driving is preparation.

Before you back your car out of the driveway, know what kind of conditions you are likely to be facing on the roads and prepare accordingly.

The transportation department offers several resources to check road and traffic conditions from your computer or phone. A quick visit to http://wsdot.wa.gov/ traffic/passes/offers information

on conditions in the mountain passes, as well as real-time traffic cameras from all over the state.

Information on current road conditions is also available by calling 1-800-695-ROAD(7623) or dialing 511 from a cellular phone.

The WSP also recommends that drivers prepare their car for winter by getting a tune up, checking the brakes, battery, lights, wipers, heater/defroster, belts, hoses and filters, to ensure they are in proper working condition, as well as checking oil and antifreeze fluid levels.

However, the best piece of advice to winter driving – whether it is in snow, ice or rain, is simply slowing down.

“The best bit of advice I can give, and it’s the simplest and the most complex, is to just slow down and increase your following distance,” State Patrol spokesperson Trooper Clifford Pratt said.

Getting around

FYI

More information is available at www. wsdot.wa.gov/winter/ or www.wsp. wa.gov/traveler/docs/equipmt/wintwise. pdf.

Crew chief Daisy Dailey with the King County Road Services Division explains how the di-icing system works in cold weather. DEAN A. RADFORD, Renton Reporter “You just can’t drive the way you You’re at the mercy of inertia, modo in the summer or when it’s not mentum and the vehicle weight. raining. These are completely difYou just have to prevent that by ferent driving conditions.” driving slow and keeping a safe According to Pratt, that also distance.” applies when driving in snow and The transportation department ice. recommends that drivers drive for “Even more so in snow and ice, the conditions by going slower, you’re defeating all the stopping accelerating slower and steering power of your car,” he said. “You and braking slower. Avoid lane can have the best tires on the road changes and keep a safe distance and every bit of that is negated on between you and the vehicle in snow and ice. Once you start to front of you. The department also slide, there is nothing you can do. reminds drivers with four-wheel

drive that their vehicles will not stop or steer better in icy conditions.

Drivers are also advised to prepare for all eventualities by assembling a winter driving kit containing tire chains, shovel, first aid supplies, gloves, flashlight and an ice scraper, as well as warm clothes, a blanket and nonperishable food and water.

In the event that you are involved in a collision on the roads, officials ask that you stay in your vehicle. If you collide with another vehicle and no one is injured the department recommends that you move the vehicles to a safe place to exchange information.

The simplest piece of advice both the transportation department and state patrol have to offer is simply stay at home, however. If conditions are bad and your trip is not essential keep the car in the driveway.

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Get business, home ready before winter tightens grip

By SHAWN SKAGER sskager@auburn-reporter.com

With La Niña poised to bring a colder and wetter winter than normal to the Pacific Northwest, the time is now to begin preparing for the possible onslaught of Old Man Winter.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, (NOAA), La Niña occurs when the Pacific Ocean cools more than usual near the equator, driving colder, wetter and more severe weather to our region. The last La Niña cycle occurred in 1995 and brought severe windstorms, including a Dec. 12 storm that produced sustained winds above 50 mph – with gusts of more than 90 mph – in Washington.

In anticipation of possible emergency situations brought about by ferocious winter storms, King County, State Farm and Puget Sound Energy have teamed up to create the “Take Winter by Storm” website to educate people about how they can prepare.

In addition to preparations for emergencies such as flooding and power outages, residents can also get ready by taking a few steps to “I’m ready. Working winterize their house or business. here, I just don’t “The first place to start is have an excuse not to be.” Brian McLendon, the exterior,” Brian McLendon, manager of the Renton manager, Renton McLendon Hardware store, McLendon Hardware says. “They need to unscrew their garden houses off their faucets and cover them; otherwise they might freeze and split their pipes.”

McLendon said his store, like most hardware stores, will help educate and guide homeowners through the steps necessary to weatherproof a building.

“We will walk through the steps, starting with the exteriors of the house and moving inside to the mechanical things,” McLendon said. “You should have weather stripping around doors and windows. You need to get the roofs ready and get the gutters clean and faucets sealed.”

The Take Winter by Storm website also lists the following preparations to get your building ready: • Check your roof for loose, missing, worn or damaged shingles to eliminate flying debris and reduce the chance of possible water damage; • Make sure flashing is secure around vents and chimneys; • Clean gutters and make sure they are properly aligned and securely attached to your home; • Watch the patterns of storm-water drainage on slopes near your home, and note the places where runoff water converges. Watch the hills around your [ more HOME, BUSINESS page 21 ]

8

PAGE 1

David Froelich, Ann Eastman, Ed Eastman, Melissa Gustafson and firefighter Dale Laginess, from left, practice carrying a mock disaster victim as part of their training in the Auburn Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program. Robert Whale, Auburn Reporter

CERT training can prove critical, when help is hours or days away

By ROBERT WHALE rwhale@auburn-reporter.com

Afflicted with fibromyalgia, the lasting damage of childhood polio, bad ankles, worse knees and a battery of health issues, Loni Fischer relies on four arm crutches to get around – very slowly.

Yet there was Fischer in a downtown Auburn parking lot on a recent Saturday morning, side by side with fellow students enrolled in Auburn’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training program, eager to pitch in for the first hands-on activity of the class.

The day’s task is “cribbing,” building and using boxes capable of lifting heavy things off people laid low by earthquakes, floods, storms, explosions or other disasters.

With, muscle, sweat and helpful hints from seasoned emergency personnel, team members got that dumpster off the ground.

“I didn’t think I could do it,” Fischer of Pacific said later. “I have very little energy. I’m not physically able to do a lot of things.”

Fischer and her classmates are among the more than 250 people who

CERT training

FYI

AUBURN The City of Auburn Emergency Management Office, in conjunction with the White River Valley Citizen Corps Council, provides area residents with Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training at no cost. For more information call 253-876-1925 or visit www.auburnwa.gov/disaster.

RENTON The City of Renton CERT academy is taught by fire department personnel and local experts. There is a charge. For more information about CERT or to register for classes, call 425-430-7041 or visit www.rentonwa.gov and click on the recreation division and then on cybersignup.org.

KENT The Kent Fire Department began offering the CERT training in 1999. For information about the program, call 253-856-4440 or visit www.ci.kent.wa.us/content.aspx?id=1500

since 2006 have taken advantage of the Auburn program, tailored like all CERT programs to give the average person the basic skills necessary to

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

respond to a disaster or emergency in their neighborhood.

In cities nationwide – Kent and Renton among them – thousands of adults are learning the same lessons from the same Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) manual: how to handle extinguishers and put out fires; what to do around chemical leaks; how to triage the injured; how to administer first aid; how to read gas and water meters, and how to get people out of collapsed buildings.

Each session combines a lecture with hands-on practical activities.

After listening to Kelly Williams, public information officer for the Valley Regional Fire Authority talk about fires and fire extinguishers, students walked outside to the parking lot and took turns snuffing out carefully controlled fires, under the watchful eye of a firefighter from the Valley Regional Fire Authority. Students also learn how an electrical panel works.

Sarah Miller, Auburn’s emergency management director, said she prefers to stress the hands-on stuff because “most adults learn that way.”

“The first thing we go on is this [ more CERT page 19 ]

CERT is cornerstone of citizen response to a disaster [ CERT from page 18] assumption there are no 911 calls because a disaster has happened,” Miller said. “We teach them to treat life-threatening injuries.

The ones that can sort and triage people.

They figure out who they can help, and of those they can help who needs help most urgently. We do light search-and-rescue where we teach them how to search a building. We teach them to build supports so they can lift heavy objects off of people. They go out and do a round robin through all the different medical stations.

They practice how to move people safely.

Somewhere in there they do their cribbing.

They’ll use lumber and build these boxes and lift this heavy object.”

Keith Blaisdell backs up Janice Hoffman as she prepares to extinguish a fire, part of their training for Auburn’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). robert Whale, Auburn Reporter

After graduation After students graduate, their names are put on an e-mail list so they all get information about training, volunteer opportunities and actual disaster situations that may be coming. They are also entered into Auburn’s Code Red System, which allows emergency personnel to call all of them at once if their help is needed.

Students learn right away that they are responsible for themselves, their household and their neighborhood, in that order.

Likewise, if they are at work when disaster strikes, it’s themselves, their co-workers, and last, the neighborhood where they do business.

“Basically, they “A disaster teach us first-aid asresearcher found sessment of a disaster that after urban in our own communiearthquakes, 95 ty or neighborhood,” percent of the said Auburn’s Keith people who are rescued are rescued Blaisdell. “Like they say, fire and emergenby other victims.” cy services may not be Sarah Miller, Auburn’s available for days. So emergency management what you would do is director go out and assess your neighborhood for injuries. Are people bleeding bad, are people trapped in their houses? Basically, you try to be a lifeline for a few days until you get real help.”

The CERT program was born in the early to mid-1980s in Los Angeles when city leaders realized that ordinary people, not first responders, do most of the rescuing during and after a disaster.

“A disaster researcher found that after urban earthquakes, 95 percent of the people who are rescued are rescued by other victims,” said Miller. “They’re not rescued by professional responders, because those folks are overwhelmed.”

Realizing that many people wanted to help, Los Angeles leaders asked themselves, ‘Why not give those people some basic training?’ The standard FEMA curriculum was adopted, and CERT was on its way. The program proved to be so effective that the first Bush administration adopted it nation-

A key part of the CERT training is the time spent in the classroom gaining valuable information in preparation for the final exam, a mock disaster drill. ROBERT WHALE, Auburn Reporter wide as part of the Citizen’s Corps Council.

Today, CERT is the cornerstone of citizen involvement in disasters.

Kent’s CERT program predates Auburn’s by seven years, said program coordinator Kimberly Behymer.

“We now have more than 1,100 folks who have taken our training. When we offer the program, we offer two sessions at a time. We have an afternoon and an evening session. The afternoon session is tailored to the business community and the retirement community. The evening session is all of that, but the main focus is citizens,” said Behymer.

“The CERT program is what we call an all-hazard program in that we don’t focus on one particular disaster. So, in our program we talk about all of the disasters that are potential in this area, such as earthquakes, windstorms, flooding, snow storms, those kind of typical events. And

then we really encourage people to get involved in their neighborhoods to respond, and that’s kind of their first area of responsibility,” said Behymer.

“We have not used them on actual disasters as of yet, but we have used them during exercises,” Behymer added of the CERT graduates.

Renton’s CERT program has been offered “on and off ” for about six years, said Mindi Mattson, Renton’s emergency management coordinator.

The Renton CERT academy has trained 348 individuals, including citizens and employees of local businesses.

Those academy graduates will be critical in a disaster response when the 40 or so firefighters typically on duty are answering other emergency calls, Mattson said.

“Folks are going to be on their own,” she said.

Relying on the natural altruistic human

❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

impulse and the different skill sets of the students, Miller launched Auburn’s program in 2006.

“Most people are good-hearted; they see somebody who needs help, they help. They don’t go ‘Oh, we’ll wait, we’ll just watch and wait until somebody comes along’,” Miller added.

“Wherever I’ve been, I’ve always tried to make friends with my neighbors so that we can all watch out for each other,” said Sumner resident Susan Griffin “We are close to the mountain, and there is always that possibility that Mount Rainier can go.

A lot of people are very unprepared and I thought this would be a good thing for me to get into. It’s opened my eyes even more.”

Classes meet three times a year.

“Anybody can finish this class,” Miller said. “Everybody just does what their own limits are. Everybody who takes the class finishes the class, if they want to. It’s a great class, it really is. We give people basic skills and the basic disaster preparedness idea of how to get themselves ready.”

Neighbor coordination

Becky Huntsman of Des Moines explained why she is taking the class.

“I’m hoping to be able to train and have a meeting in my neighborhood,” said Huntsman. “That way, our street will be somewhat responsive to an emergency that happens, and I can help coordinate that.”

Fisher first heard about the CERT program in e-mails Pacific Mayor Richard Hildreth sent out after the White River flooded the community in January 2009.

“I don’t know why, but I just felt impressed to take the class,” said Fischer. “I signed up for it, and I’m glad I did. I still don’t know what I’m going to be able to do, but I’m getting a lot of information. If I can do this, anybody can.”

PAGE

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[ home, business from page 19] home for any signs of land movement, such as small landslides, debris flows or progressively tilting trees. Contact your local geotechnical or structural engineer to determine the severity of the problem; • Grade property so water drains away from the foundation and downspouts direct water away from the house into the storm drainage system; • Replace caulk and weather-stripping that has lost contact with surfaces; • Rake leaves away from drains to avoid street and property flooding; • Check for loose handrails, banisters and stair coverings. Buckled or cracked walks should be repaired; • Clear snow and ice from sidewalks in front of your home to avoid dangerous falls (this is the home/property owner’ responsibility); • Keep snow build-up off of surfaces that could collapse; • Trim shrubbery away from siding to prevent insect and moisture damage.

Remove shrubbery that interferes with

power failPlumber’s ure of the primary tips pump.

• Wrap your water pipes for winter In • Disconnect garden hose addition, • Plug air vents in the crawl space McLen• If you have a garden faucet and it don is freezing, let the water run slowly advises • Install a back water valve getting • Make sure all storm drain lines a snow are free of fall leaves shovel as Source: Beacon Plumbing well as ice melt or rock salt.

“People are already buying snow shovels,” he said. “A couple of years ago when we had the big snow, every place ran out of them.

I had people coming in and buying regular shovels to clear their walks.”

In addition, the Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends drafting an emergency plan with your family or coworkers, so everybody knows what to do and where to be in case of an emergency.

The key to riding out a potentially strong winter is just being ready for whatever eventuality Old Man Winter can throw at you.

“I’m ready,” McLendon said. “Working here, I just don’t have an excuse not to be.”

Ron Mathews, a manager at McLendon Hardware in Renton, shows off the store’s Take Winter by Storm wall, where essentials to weather a bad storm or disaster are displayed. dean a. radford, Renton Reporter walkways; • Insulate exposed water pipes and outdoor faucets to protect them from freezing; • Check smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and change batteries as needed.

Replace units every 10 years; • Check basement and crawl space for

dampness and leakage. Standing water could be a sign of improper drainage.

• Check all windows for proper operation and locking capability; and • Test your sump pump before the start of every wet season. Battery-operated backup sump pumps can help protect against

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Green River flood preparation information available in the following languages at www.kingcounty.gov/floodplans

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• Make a family emergency plan for how your family will communicate (especially if local calls are blocked) and know several evacuation routes to higher ground.

• Choose two emergency meeting places - one near home and one outside your neighborhood in case you cannot return home after a disaster.

• Assemble emergency kits - basic supplies for at least 3 days (one for home, vehicle, and office/ school); don’t forget supplies for your animals.

• Get involved and stay informed check on neighbors that may need help, volunteer if needed, and register for emergency alerts at

www.kingcounty.gov/floodplans

EMERGENCY KIT CHECKLIST • Battery or crank-operated radio and flashlight and batteries • First aid kit/supplies • Medications • Copies of important documents in a plastic bag (driver’s license, insurance and bank/credit card information, family and other contact information) • 3-day supply of water and canned and no-cook food that doesn’t spoil such as crackers, peanut butter, dry cereal, canned fruit and vegetables plus a non-electric can opener

For a checklist and emergency contact card in multiple languages, visit takewinterbystorm.org

• Warm clothing, sturdy shoes/boots and blankets

• Comfort items for children (books, games and toys)

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❙ 2010 SAFETY PREPAREDNESS: A User’s Guide ❙

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