Be 2 Weeks Ready
Oregon has experienced a recent cycle of emergencies and disasters, including floods, drought, wildfires, ice storms, excessive heat, and a pandemic. Disasters can happen anywhere, at any time and it could take days to weeks for first responders or supplies to reach you. That’s why everyone should take steps to “Be 2 Weeks Ready.” Being 2 Weeks Ready means having an emergency plan and enough supplies for you and everyone in your household to survive for at least two weeks following a disaster.
The Be 2 Weeks Ready Program has been adopted by the City as a fun and accessible way to enhance community and household preparedness. The Program is delivered via the Be 2 Weeks Ready Tool Kit. This Program is organized into eight user-friendly lessons and an activity book filled with helpful hints, fun projects and resources to help you prepare for a disaster. Individuals can work through the lessons alone at your own pace, or with a group lead by a local Community Host. Working together is a great way to build community resilience and get to know your neighbors so you can support each other, as well as help elderly and vulnerable neighbors near you during an emergency.
Check in with your Neighborhood Association to see when their next Be 2 Weeks Ready session might be or download the Be 2 Weeks Ready Toolkit yourself to start working towards preparing your household to weather the next disaster securely, safely, and as comfortably as possible.
We are currently seeking people interested in becoming Community Hosts! Anyone with an interest in emergency preparedness can get their neighborhood, church group, non-profit, Mom/Dads group, or literally any other gathering of friends or people together. We have training plans and resources to help you work through the material. Its easy, accessible, and flexible - you can't do it wrong! Really the goal is just to get community together around this topic - to help encourage each other to find time to prepare, while also getting to know each other and learn how you might support each other during a disaster. In large scale disasters community is key to responding to and weathering a major disaster. Please reach out to ddigby@westlinnoregon.gov to learn how to become a Community Host!
By the end of the program, you’ll be confident and prepared when the next disaster strikes!
*The Toolkit is available in 5 languages: English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, and American Sign Language (ASL)
