National Preparedness Month, Week 2: Update Kits with CDC Recommended Supplies

The theme for the second week of National Preparedness Month is “Build a Kit,” which encourages assembling a collection of basic items, such as food, water, and other supplies, to last for several days in the event of an emergency. In addition to listing these supplies, the Ready.gov “Build a Kit” webpage includes a menu of items recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the onset of flu season. While this step is primarily oriented towards individuals and families, WaterISAC reminds its members that individual preparedness undergirds organizational preparedness. Lacking employees who have prepared themselves and their families for emergencies, an organization may find itself understaffed and unable to respond and recover from events as quickly as it had planned.

While the “Build a Kit” webpage is primarily oriented towards individuals and families, Ready.gov’s “Business” webpage provides resources that are more relevant to organizations, including utilities. These resources include Ready Business Toolkits for specific kinds of disasters, including hurricanes, inland flooding, earthquakes, power outages, and more

In its message for the second week of National Preparedness Month, EPA encourages utilities to plan for tomorrow’s emergency by using resources it has made available for water and wastewater utilities. These resources include its resilience planning guides, such as its Power Resilience Guide and Hazard Mitigation Guide. They also include EPA’s ERP Template and Guidance to assist with developing an America’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) compliant Emergency Response Plan.