Recent events indicate nowhere is safe from disaster, natural and otherwise. Dedicated volunteers and professionals in Concordia – throughout Portland, the state and the nation – are ready to help you prepare for events that may come.
Two of them will share details with you at the Wednesday, Nov. 1, Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Annual Membership Meeting. It begins at 7 p.m. in the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room.
Immediately prior to the 7 p.m. Annual Membership Meeting, the CNA Board of Directors will convene for its regular monthly meeting at 5:30 p.m. Members of the public are welcome and encouraged to attend and contribute.
Justin Ross, community capacity specialist, represents Multnomah County Emergency Management at the CNA meeting. That department hosts and sponsors a variety of personal and community preparedness classes through its new Community Preparedness Education and Outreach Team.
His presentation will outline the impacts of a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake. Scientists estimate that zone, a fault that stretches from northern California to Vancouver Island, has a 37 percent probability to rupture within the next 50 years and produce a 9.0-plus earthquake in Portland.
He’ll also discuss the necessity for local residents, businesses, agencies, organizations and governments to become disaster resilient. That requires them to:
- Create plans
- Build community connections
- Obtain training
Amy Gard, leader of the all-volunteer Concordia/Vernon/Woodlawn Neighborhood Emergency Team (NET) will explain how the three-dozen-member team plans and drills for natural disasters. She’ll also discuss “Map Your Neighborhood,” an Oregon Emergency Management/Oregon Citizen Corps publication.
The NET is one of 71 across Portland that are trained by the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management and Portland Fire & Rescue to respond to events that include:
- Earthquakes
- Floods
- Severe winter storms
- Hazardous material spills
- Other citywide/regional emergencies
The local team is tasked with acting as first responders to help the 17,000 local residents survive until the arrival of adequate emergency services. NETs aren’t new to Portland which, in 1994, was the third city in the country to form them.
Click here for additional details – including the board election – about the CNA Annual Membership Meeting.
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