Over the past years, we’ve often read and heard all about emergency preparedness,for Sooke, for “the bigone.” Much talk about, tsumani awareness, (remember the tsunami warning signs on water area roads?) and those sirens? We’re urged to have ‘go bags’ with basic supplies. Fine. How are we going to know when to use them? Wait for warnings?
You might wait too long.
When the tsunami warning or watch was called for the entire West Coast of North America, where was all this ‘warning’?
Nowhere, that’s where. A friend found out about it when another friend called her at 3 a.m. from Sweden, concerned about her friend on the West Coast.
A city official was called at 8 a.m. by the emergency prep folks... a tad late, wouldn’t you say?
Was the problem that basically we’re all hat, no cattle? That it didn’t happen during office hours? Yes, it turned out to be a non-event for us. But hindsight is a grand thing.
Suppose it hadn’t? And how will we know the difference, or trust the ‘plans’ in place for the future?
Laurie Savoie
Sooke