The following is written by Sumner Mayor Dave Enslow:

You may have heard in the media about Cascadia Rising this week.  It’s a week-long drill that many agencies are participating in to try to prepare for a major earthquake.  Sumner staff held their portion yesterday morning.

When we talk about our busy staff, and what they do everyday, we often forget the time and effort that goes into preparing for a day we hope never comes, a major emergency.  How do we best serve you after a major earthquake?  Or lahar? Or train derailment like in Oregon?  What about a major power outage or flood (we’re familiar with those) or ice storm?  These are all things we hope never happen, yet we must think about them and how we would react.

An emergency, by definition, is something for which you can’t well prepare.  Will we have power, cell phone service, or even drinkable water?  Will our homes be standing?  Will City Hall be standing?  Will we be at home or at work with our kids in school?  We won’t know until it happens.  So how do you prepare for something you can’t well prepare for?

– Have an out of town contact as phone service may work out of town when local lines are jammed.
– Have a supply of non-perishable food and water at home.
– Know how to shut off your gas line.
– Know if your have neighbors with mobility challenges who may need help in an emergency.
There are a lot more tips and information available online with Pierce County and the Ready.gov.

No matter what the emergency may be or how severe it may affect us, I’m glad to know we have smart, responsive City staff across all departments ready to come together to serve us.  Let’s hope it’s training they never have to use.