Start to Prepare Now!
The OCP&R program provides information, Guides and videos on how you can prepare yourself, your family and your community for a disaster, such as a wildfire or earthquake. The information provided by OCP&R is intended to cover the most important actions that you can take now to help protect your property and your lives.
OCP&R recommends that you follow the steps below to get started. To help you with this, please download or print this Action Checklist and check-off the actions as you complete them.
Take these actions one-at-a-time. Work on them as your schedule allows and set dates as goals for completing them. Remember, each step you take to prepare for an emergency, the better off you are than before!
1. Watch the video workshops on this site
Watch each of the 4 short OCP&R video workshops on this site. Each video is less than 10 minutes. The videos will explain, at a high level, the most important actions that you should take to prepare for, respond to and recover from a disaster.
Note that an instructor-led, on-line Web conference (Zoom) workshop is also available for your neighborhood group or association. Contact us to request an on-line workshop (that covers all the information in the 4 videos).
2. Review the Guides on this site
Review the individual Guides on this site so that you know what is available. Each Guide is a 1-page (front and back) PDF file with more detailed preparedness and response information that you can view, download and/or print. Many of the Guides are referenced in the video workshops and there are others on topics such as Firesafe Planting and Backup Power.
3. Organize (or re-organize) your neighborhood (if not already)
Organized neighborhoods (also known as Block-by-Groups, Block Action Teams or Neighborhood Action Teams) are key to better preparing for and responding to a disaster as a community. Neighbors look out for each other and help each other in an emergency. Neighborhood groups can also work on making their area more firesafe (Firewise USA) and on crime prevention (Neighborhood Watch), among other activities. Check out the OCP&R Guide on Neighborhood Organization for more information. And even in this time of sheltering-in-place and social-distancing for COVID-19, you can help organize your neighborhood virtually on-line.
Organizing or reorganizing a neighborhood from scratch can take some time. OCP&R recommends that while this is taking place, you work on and finish the remaining actions noted below.
4. Take the actions to prepare
Take the recommended actions to prepare yourself, your family and your community for a disaster. These are outlined in the videos and Guides and should include:
- Sign up for AC Alert and learn more about emergency alerts and notifications
- Learn about emergency evacuations and create your family evacuation plan
- Study recommended Evacuation Guidelines
- Build your emergency Go-Bags
- Prepare for PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoffs
- Harden your home to protect against a wildfire and against an earthquake
- Become a Firewise USA certified neighborhood
5. Take additional emergency preparedness and response training
Learn much more about preparing for, responding to and recovering from a disaster by taking Oakland’s CORE classes (when they become available) or FEMA’s CERT courses. And check out Prepare U. classes on preparedness offered by the Bay Area Training and Exercise Program. We hope that OCP&R is a stepping-stone for you to want to learn all you can about being as prepared as possible for a wildfire, earthquake or other emergency.
