Contact: Rich Ochs
Phone: 307 733 9572
Email: rochs@tetonwyo.org

NEWS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 4, 2012

CONTACT: Rich Ochs, Coordinator

Teton County Emergency Management

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ASKS PUBLIC TO “PLEDGE TO PREPARE”

Jackson, WY – September 2012 marks the 9^th annual National Preparedness Month (NPM), and the 5^th year that Teton County Emergency Management has participated. NPM is a FEMA-led public awareness campaign aimed at making our nation more disaster-resistant. “The number one factor that will determine how quickly a community gets back on its feet after a disaster is the level of preparedness of the public,” says Rich Ochs, Coordinator with Teton County Emergency Management. “Citizen disaster preparedness is the foundation of our community preparedness as a whole,” he continues.

This year, Emergency Management asks all Teton County residents and workers to “Pledge To Prepare” by doing at least one of four simple tasks:

1.     Learn about emergency hazards and their appropriate responses

2.     Make a communications plan

3.     Build an emergency kit

4.     Get involved in preparedness in your community

Details on how to complete these simple pledges can be found on the Emergency Management website at www.tetonwyo.org/em and at www.ready.gov. “This is a great time to either take these pledges or review your current emergency kit and plans”, says Ochs. A simple way to make your communications plan more robust is to make sure that you, your friends, and your family are signed up for Teton County’s emergency email/text message notification system, Nixle at www.nixle.com. “Information can be the most important resource during a disaster,” says Ochs.

This year, both Teton County Emergency Management and the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security are offering preparedness prizes during NPM. To register for both of these contests, visit www.tetonwyo.org/em and click the link in the upper left corner.

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