The Waterline
September 6, 2012
Vol. XXIX No.36
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NEWS AND INFORMATION FOR THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
Operation Prepare is now Ready Navy By NDW Public Affairs Re-energized to further empower Navy personnel and families with tools and resources for personal readiness, the U.S. Navy’s emergency preparedness program, Operation Prepare, is now READY NAVY! During 2011’s record year of natural hazard incidents, numerous members of the Navy community were directly impacted. Ready Navy is a rebranding being done to align the Navy's program with those of other Department of Defense (DoD) and government entities. All of the military branches are participating in similar programs to Ready Navy. "Over the past year, each of the services, the DoD components, have had to realign to the Ready.gov concept," said Jerry Sanford, emergency manager for Commander, Navy Installations Command (N37), referring to the civilian side of the Ready initiative and its website www.ready.gov. "We've had a lot of things happen in the past that has caused us
all to look at our readiness procedures: Hurricane Katrina, for instance, was huge. It was one of the first times that a natural disaster caused whole installations to evacuate." Sanford mentioned Katrina as being one of the driving forces behind revisiting readiness initiatives, along with the shootings at Ft. Hood outside of Killeen, Tex. in 2009. He stressed the importance of knowing "what one would do in the moment," and that having a plan for any contingency is vital. Preparedness is a virtue to be celebrated by everyone associated with the armed forces as increased preparedness translates into increased mission readiness. The Ready Navy initiative intends to serve the interests of Navy personnel and their families; not only will the Navy be better supported, families, especially those with younger children will be safer. "Readiness initiatives help Sailors with children in a number of ways," said Linda Hautzenroder, regional counseling, advocacy and prevention coordinator with Fleet and
Family Readiness (N9) for NDW. "For example, if a Sailor is feeling both mentally and physically prepared for a hurricane event both at work and at home, it can foster a sense of security and satisfaction knowing that they can continue with their work mission and knowing that their children are being cared for." Ready Navy emphasizes and practices emergency preparedness concepts that are already proven to be sound. According to Sanford, Ready Navy works by taking simple safety ideas and puts them into practice: it promotes a cyclical approach to readiness, one
that encourage building a kit, making a plan, being informed and getting involved. Being informed involves being knowledgeable of all necessary information regarding a possible threat prior to it actually surfacing. For instance the track of a weather system or evacuation routes gives families the comfort of being prepared for a dangerous scenario. Sometimes, however, there is little or no warning before a hazard arises so building a kit that is ready to go and is designed to properly equip someone for any threat gives them the resources they would need to support themselves until help arrives. Making a plan for easy contact and mobility withone'sfamilyintimeofcrisisisessential.The program provides everyone with pamphlets that work to help families make a plan by keeping a list of contact information, emergency numbers, and notes as to where to meet if separated. In the same vein are staying informed us-
See Ready, Page 7
101 Critical Days Come to a Close Benjamin Christensen, NDW Waterline writer
U.S. Navy photo by Darren Harrison
Naval District Washington offers Motorcycle Cycle safety courses between March and October for military personnel and civilian employees who plan to ride a motorcycle on a DoD facility. Combating motorcycle incidents through training is one of several highlights during the Navywide campaign “101 Critical Days of Summer”.
With summer's last hurrah, the Labor Day weekend, the 101 Critical Days of Summer where mishaps are at their highest have come to a close. The 101 Critical Days of Summer, which run from roughly Memorial Day until Labor Day, have unfortunately produced a number of mishaps Navy-wide. According to the Naval Safety Center, summer 2012 has had more fatalities due to mishaps than 2011. These incidents run the gamut from drownings to motorcycle accidents. Because of the high level of recreational activity, the summer is always a potentially dangerous time. According to Jim Peake, the safety installation program director for Naval Support Activity Washington, people tend to forget some common sense safety information when the warmer months roll around. "During the summer months, when we feel jolly and sometimes us older people want to feel young again, you're going out and doing things that you haven't done in six, seven,
eight months and you might not use your basic safety practices," said Peake. Just because the summer is coming to a close, however, does not mean that the danger of mishaps ever truly dissipates. Although the weather will get colder and people will be spending less time outside, everyone should still remain vigilant. "The potential [for accidents] is and always will be present due to the human or mechanical factor," said Peake. "For example, 'the human factor': A call comes in that an individual has fallen into a manhole. Upon mishap investigation the individual was texting and walking and did not see the open manhole. This actually happened on the Washington Navy Yard (WNY). The mechanical can be due to malfunction in the operation of a machine (belt breaking, fluids, and etcetera)." Peake referenced the importance of always being wary of safety risks, especially when it comes to children. He cited the changing weather and visibility concerns as being particularly notable, especially now that
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Around the Yard, Page 2
AFPAK Blog, Page 6
See Close, Page 9