Individuals need to be prepared for potential disasters
While Logan continues to prepare for emergencies, students can have personal emergency plans of their own.
“I don’t know anyone that is more prepared than Logan City,” said Scott Douglas, safety and emergency management director for the city of Logan.
Douglas said that in an emergency, the first priority is to get Logan functioning again. By functioning, Douglas said he means the city needs to provide the critical services it provides every day as quickly as possible.
One example Douglas gave of the city’s disaster preparations is a separate water route feeding Logan Regional Hospital. The main water line runs from 400 East before coming to the hospital, he said. The city spent $80,000 to create a new line which runs from 600 East to serve as an alternate water route should the first become unusable in an emergency, he said.
However, many citizens may not be prepared to deal with a disaster.
Personal preparedness is the key to survival in an emergency, Douglas said.
“What it comes down to is how important it is to you that your loved ones are guaranteed to be taken care of,” he said.
Douglas said people will prepare according to how much they care about their loved ones’ well-being.
In order to start preparing, Douglas said people can start thinking about what they need to have to survive for 72 hours. He said within 72 hours is the response time for armed forces to arrive and help with disaster recovery.
“Thinking you don’t have to be prepared because Logan is prepared is like Logan saying [it] doesn’t have to be prepared because Cache County is prepared,” Douglas said. “The unthinkable can become the possible.”
He said Logan’s plan doesn’t preclude people from having their own emergency plans.
“The real question is ‘What is my individual plan?'” Douglas said.
Utah State University Police Sgt. Lynn Wright said in case of an emergency, students should plan to have an out-of-state contact.
When emergencies strike, phone calls flood into the valley, overwhelming the phone system and rendering communication impossible, he said.
He said the out-of-state contact would relay information from the student to people inquiring after his or her welfare.
Wright said in an emergency students living on campus should touch base with a resident assistant or resident director, all of whom are trained in basic first aid.
Logan has an emergency response program in which a Police Area Representative is assigned to each elementary school and can assist people with procuring emergency help, Douglas said.
“Logan City School District has given us permission to use the schools, and the Red Cross is aware,” he said.
However, students should have an alternate plan, he said.
“Sometimes it’s safer to stay inside,” Wright said.
In case the need arises for in-place sheltering during an emergency, fire trucks and police cars will drive through neighborhoods emitting the high-low siren that will signal people to listen for emergency broadcasts, Wright said.
“KVNU [AM 610] is the primary source for emergency news,” he said.
Wright said students need to have extra water available and can refill two-liter bottles instead of throwing them away.
“Be sure you have water and medicine,” he said.
He said students should have non-perishable food items they could store under the bed.
“I have energy bars, but I wouldn’t want to live on them,” Wright said.