Among the many arenas where county government takes the lead in conjunction with our state and federal partners is emergency management. This is a comprehensive effort that works both to plan for and to coordinate response to any and all possible events such as wildfires, flooding, landslides, chemical or biological hazards, cyber attacks, tsunamis, significant law enforcement events and, of course, earthquakes.

In early May, our Emergency Management team, with the assistance of the Washington Emergency Management Department, convened a meeting to engage in an Emergency Management Preparedness exercise. We welcomed representatives from many local law enforcement agencies, fire districts, the Port of Port Angeles, the Coast Guard, local hospitals and even community partners like the Red Cross and OlyCAP.

The purpose of this effort was to assess our county’s capabilities and potential needs for support during a broad range of potential disasters. Not only does this exercise help us understand our own strengths and gaps of resource or expertise, but it also helps to inform how the state should be positioned to best assist and support counties’ Emergency Management function.

The heart of this exercise was a comprehensive risk assessment, with risk being defined as a combination of likelihood of occurrence and potential impact or consequence. Not surprisingly, the types of events that present the highest risk to residents and visitors to our county include flooding, wildfire and earthquakes. Landslides, pandemics and drought fall into the “medium risk” category while ice storms and extreme temperature events are examples considered “low risk.”

The group discussed our local capacity to address a wide range of potential risks, spanning 32 separate categories. We discussed, within each category, what we need to prepare for, what level of capability do we need, how does this compare to our current capacity, what and where are the gaps and how we should be setting priorities moving forward.

While this comprehensive assessment happens every three years there is of course continual work happening here in our county, both at every individual agency and through regular meetings to coordinate and share information within local operational areas across the county. Every agency has a role and a distinct set of responsibilities, and a large part of what the county works to do is to facilitate and ensure coordination.

It isn’t enough, though, just to know that local and state government is working hard to plan for and be ready to respond to a broad range of emergencies. We each have a personal responsibility as well. Understanding what you and your family should do in the first hours after any kind of disaster can help save lives and reduce the potential for increased personal or property damage.

If you have not done so already, please visit the Emergency Management page at clallamcountywa.gov where you will find a variety of resources and information to help you and your family be prepared. You will find resources to help you pack a “go” bag; information to help with considerations for your pet or domestic animals; suggestions for retrofitting your home for improved safety, and more. The “Prepare for a Year” exercise takes you through preparedness basics over the course of 12 months, breaking this work down into digestible bites.

If you are interested in getting more deeply involved, consider organizing a “Map Your Neighborhood” exercise which will help you meet your neighbors and identify those who might need additional assistance after an emergency. If that isn’t enough, then you might consider joining a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) which are trained groups of people who will serve as “force multipliers” for first responders after a major disaster.

In an environment where federal resources and commitment to supporting emergency response appears to be in retreat it is even more important for us to be prepared as individuals, families, communities and residents of Washington State and I encourage you to take advantage of the great resources the county provides to assist in this effort.