Lacey City Council puts emergency preparedness in focus

The City of Lacey is stepping up its emergency preparedness push this month with household planning and volunteer radio support to anchor the effort. 

The Lacey City Council recognized September as Emergency Preparedness Month during a meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 1. The proclamation urges community members to prepare before emergencies disrupt services or delay assistance.  

First responders may not always reach community members quickly during a disaster, the proclamation states. Advance preparation provides families with the plans and supplies needed to manage that gap, it states, and helps communities recover once an emergency has passed. 

Household planning 

The city encourages residents to draft a family preparedness plan, assemble an emergency kit and map an evacuation route. The proclamation also calls on community members to learn about local hazards and teach youths about emergency preparedness. 

The Pacific Northwest faces the threat of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, weather events, floods and human tragedies, according to the proclamation. Such events can disrupt power, communications and travel infrastructure with little warning. 

Communication is another part of emergency preparation. Thurston County Amateur Radio Emergency Services (TCARES) provides volunteer radio communications when commercial systems are unavailable. 

Radio support 

TCARES President John Wruble told the council the group is made up of trained amateur radio operators, who volunteer their time for emergency communications, many of whom live in Lacey. 

"One of the strengths of amateur radio is that it does not rely on commercial power, the cellular service or any internet infrastructure," Wruble said. "When those systems go down, we are still operational, fully operational." 

During emergencies, operators can relay messages between shelters, transmit resource requests and provide situational information, Wruble said. They can also support first responders and help reunite families. 

TCARES staffs the radio room at Thurston County's Emergency Communications and Coordination Center, Wruble said, and communicates directly with Washington State Department of Transportation and Washington State Emergency Management. 

The organization belongs to a national network called the Amateur Radio Emergency Service, which counts about 3,000 local groups and more than 27,000 members across the country, Wruble said. 

In Lacey, the group also assists outside emergencies. TCARES supports communications equipment at the city's emergency communications center and trains volunteers to use General Mobile Radio Service. Members also handle radio communications for the Lacey Spring Fun Fair, the Lacey Fireworks Spectacular and Lacey Holiday Lights. 

The proclamation refers people to Ready.gov for emergency planning resources and FEMA.gov for information on this year’s “Americans Stand Ready” theme.