OXNARD : City Adds Funds to Disaster Program

When it comes to disasters, safety officials all repeat the same mantra: “Be Prepared.”

But Oxnard’s City Council gave the saying some muscle this week when it voted to channel an additional $21,350 to the city’s Disaster Preparedness and Response Program.

The money will be used to train city employees and residents about disaster preparedness, fire suppression, search and rescue and medical treatment so they can serve as leaders in a disaster. Another program called Camp Disaster will teach disaster-aid techniques to at-risk youth.

“Because of the fault zones in the area, the county of Ventura is one of the prime locations for another large earthquake,” said Tom Waller, manager of Oxnard’s disaster preparedness program. “We are looking at people being isolated for a few hours or a few days. Certain areas will have to rely on these community response teams.”

The program will use $8,000 to add 12 Community Emergency Response Team classes so residents can learn to become rescue point people in a disaster. About $7,000 will be used to train 200 city employees on how to respond to an emergency so the city is not shut down by a disaster.

A Sibling Care program will teach 50 youngsters how to care for other minors in the household during a calamity.

“Private citizens can have a huge impact,” Waller said. “About four out of 10 people who die in a major earthquake can be saved by the simple measures that we teach in these courses.”

For more information on disaster preparedness classes, call Waller at 385-7720.