CAPCOG recognizes Preparedness Month with virtual campaign

CAPCOG will recognize September as National Preparedness Month with a social media, awareness campaign focusing on educating people about simple actions they can take to drastically improve their disaster readiness, such as registering for local alerts at WarnCentralTexas.org or packing a Go-Kit — a supply bag to take with you during an emergency. CAPCOG also is encouraging local jurisdictions to participate in National Preparedness Month and the campaign.

“Disasters can occur anywhere at any time,” said Martin Ritchey, CAPCOG homeland security director. “Households should be prepared year-round for disasters, but September is our time to focus residents on how to be prepared.” Central Texas is prone to flash floods, wildfires, tornadoes and a growing number of cybersecurity threats among other disasters. During the month, the virtual campaign will instruct people how to take preparedness actions for threats specific to the region. It also will share information about websites and organizations that help increase resident’s disaster awareness such as the Texas Forest Service, Ready.gov, and ATXFloods.com. CAPCOG will share campaign’s timeline and messaging, so local jurisdictions can share the campaign throughout the month. CAPCOG also has WarnCenteralTexas.org flyers for organizations wanting to distribute materials at community centers, city halls and other locations. Contact Dee Harrison at dharrison@capcog.org to coordinate picking-up such materials.

The CAPCOG Executive Committee is slated to proclaim September as National Preparedness Month during it August meeting. Get a sample proclamation and other digital Preparedness Month and WarnCentralTexas.org materials at capcog.org/what-we-do/outreach-education/warn-central-texas/.