Do you have enough to survive for 2 weeks without electricity or water?
The City of Eugene is hosting an Emergency Preparedness Fair Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help people better prepare themselves for disasters.
It isn’t an oversight that fair is taking place in the middle of a work day.
Winningham: “How to be prepared as a business in our community is important to get back up and running quickly after a catastrophic disaster.”
Patience Winningham is the Senior Program Coordinator with the city’s Emergency Management Program. She says in addition to getting businesses ready for emergencies, the area that continues to need the most attention is individual preparedness. Winningham says people have a reasonable expectation that when “you pick up the phone and call 911, somebody is going to come help you.” But, first responders can be stretched thin during a disaster, so that’s why it’s important to plan ahead.
And, this means more than just going to a big box store and picking up an emergency kit.
Winningham: “It comes with some great stuff in it, but then it also comes with the cheap pieces that you have to take because you bought it. If you make it yourself, you get to pick the whistle, you get to pick the firestarter, you get to pick the stove and make it your own.”
And make it yourself is something you can do at the fair, located at the Park Blocks in downtown Eugene.