Community Hurricane Preparedness Program 1

COMMUNITY HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM 1

Community Hurricane Preparedness Program

Ashley Elwell

Dr. Kimberly Brodie

MPH 584 Community Health

8/16/15

Community Hurricane Preparedness Program

A storm does not reach a status of fame until has done incredible damage. Names like Sandy and Katrina strike a chord with people because they are tied to a haunting amount of destruction and lost lives. While no amount of preparation or warning may have saved the structures that were lost in these disasters it may have been able to save people. Community health programs can be effective ways to help prepare for natural disasters like hurricanes and the damage these storms can cause from high winds and flooding.

VMOSA

Vision

The goal of the community hurricane preparedness program is to help individuals better prepare themselves for the hazards that hurricanes bring with them as they hit the land. This can include heavy rains resulting in flash flooding and high winds resulting in damage to homes, pollution of water sources and loss of electricity. The vision for this program is a community that is:

“Hurricane Ready”

Mission

The mission of the program is to increase the preparedness of the community for the threats of hurricane landfall/tropical storms through education and well-organized services.

Objectives

The beginning of hurricane season in Texas is June 1st and it lasts through November 30th which helped determine the timeline for Objectives as well as the Action Plan (Weather Research Center, n.d.). The following objectives will collectively help the program to achieve its mission:

1. By June 1, 2016, the number of households prepared for hurricane season will increase 20%.
2. By June 1, 2016, the number of individuals aware of specific vulnerabilities in their neighborhood (flooding, road closures) will increase 20%.
3. By June 1, 2016, implement “Hurricane Ready” product displays at local businesses.

Strategies

Hurricane Ready will accomplish its mission by utilizing multiple strategies to effectively reach the community:

• Provide Information
• Launch/update the emergency preparedness county website including tips on how to prepare for the storm, respond to threats (flooding, evacuation), information on how to assess individual risk to flooding and how to seek assistance after the storm.
• Instructional videos walking through the above mentioned information.
• Check lists to make sure your home and family is ready for a storm.
• Informational booths at local conventions and fairs promoting the programs. There will be promotional products including a Hurricane Ready checklist magnet with the website link and bags sporting the Hurricane Ready logo for people to carry.
• Modify Accessibility to Preparedness Products
• Work with local businesses to create Hurricane Ready displays that use the program logo with products that would be needed to prepare for hurricanes and the potential aftermath (flooding, no electricity, no water source) so people can easily find these products while shopping.
• Include lists of local businesses participating on the website for easy consumer access.

Action Plan

Literature Review

Target Population

The target population for this community hurricane preparedness program is Hidalgo County located in southern Texas just about 60 miles off of the Gulf Coast. While the storm surge of a hurricane does not pose as much of a threat to residents of Hidalgo County, the high winds and heavy rains can be problematic (Weather Underground, 2015). 831,073 people reside in Hidalgo County, covering just over 1,570 square miles and includes the major communities of McAllen, Edinburg and Mission (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015).

Hidalgo County survives on very little rainfall throughout the year. McAllen, Texas, located in Hidalgo County, averages 22.24 inches of precipitation per year (U.S. climate data, 2015). When a hurricane or tropical storm hits land the slow moving, rapid rainfall quickly causes flash flooding (SHR, 2012). The results of these floods can be devastating and deadly when people who rarely experience rainfall are suddenly faced with a dangerous condition they are not prepared for. This year heavy rains left many unprepared for flooding, like the almost 150 people that were rescued in June when Hidalgo County Drainage District No. 1 (Edinburg, TX) reached hurricane levels (Action 4, 2015). In this case the storm was not even at the level of a hurricane.

The Health Belief Model

The Health Belief Model suggests that if an individual perceives that they are susceptible to a threat and that the desired behavior will effectively benefit them then they are more likely to perform the desired behavior (DiClemente, Salazar, & Crosby, 2013). For Hurricane Ready the desired behavior is proactively preparing for hurricane season and the natural disasters that may occur. The program intends to educate individuals on the threats that hurricanes produce for residents of Hidalgo County. It makes the threat even more personal by providing them the resources to assess their individual risk where they live.

Another motivator to take action that the Health Belief Model provides is a cue to action (DiClemente, Salazar & Crosby, 2013). Hurricane Ready will provide cues by using a consistent logo and vision statement that will allow residents to connect different aspects of the program. Promotion on local news channels and radio stations in the months leading up to hurricane season and during hurricane season will cue people to action. Informational booths at local conventions and fairs will provide another cue to action, as well as the magnets that will be given out which can serve as a cue every time someone walks past their refrigerator. And finally, well placed “Hurricane Ready” displays at local businesses with hurricane preparedness products including products to protect the home and supplies that would be needed in the event of losing power or water sources for an extended amount of time will act as cues to action every time residents go shopping.

COMMUNITY HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM 1

Evaluation

Hurricane Ready Logic Model

Outcomes -- Impact

Short

Medium

Long

• Launching/updating hurricane preparedness website
• Implementing Hurricane Ready displays at local businesses

• Create tips and hurricane preparedness checklists and videos
• Create an eye catching booth and handouts
• Develop a brand that can be used for displays and the program

• Residents access the website and visit booths to get information
• Residents utilize the local business list and purchase readiness supplies

• Preparedness information is taken and read
• Individuals become more aware of their susceptibility to flooding

• Increasing the number of households that take steps to be prepared for hurricanes

• Decrease in number of people who need help due to not being prepared
• Increasing hurricane preparedness knowledge.

• Residents in the target population can speak either English or Spanish.
• Residents shop locally.

• Residents having no access to the avenues used to promote the program.

COMMUNITY HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM 1

Innovation

Advantages of this approach is that it uses multiple avenues to reach the target population. This will help ensure that more people hear the message. The use of checklists make it easy for individuals to take steps to be prepared. The consistent use of the Hurricane ready brand will help the target audience tie together the different parts of this program. The displays at different places people shop will allow for easy shopping so people do not feel they must search a whole store for products they need. This may also show them products they had not thought of.

Limitations

There is always the possibility of being limited by the message not reaching the whole audience. Another major limitation that could occur in southern Texas is a language barrier. The information for the program will be in English as well as Spanish to help battle this limitation. There is also the limitation of people not having a budget to purchase preparedness supplies.

References

Action 4 News Staff. (2015, June 6). Updated: Nearly 150 rescues conducted during flooding in Hidalgo County. Retrieved from

Community Tool Box. (2015). Section 1. An overview of strategic planning or “VMOSA”. Retrieved from

DiClemente, R. J., Salazar, L. F., & Crosby, R. A. (2013). Health behavior theory for public

health: Principles, foundations and applications [Kindle DX version]. Retrieved from

Amazon.com

FEMA. (n.d). Disaster survivor assistance. Retrieved from

Hidalgo County. (n.d.) Emergency preparedness. Retrieved from

NOAA. (2015). Responding to Hurricanes. Retrieved from

SRH. (2012). The official Texas Hurricane Guide. Retrieved from

United States Census Bureau. (2015). State & county QuickFacts- Hidalgo County, Texas. Retrieved from

U.S. climate data. (2015). Climate McAllen- Texas. Retrieved from

Weather Underground. (2015). Texas storm surge models. Retrieved from