The County of San Diego will launch a pilot program to aid people with disabilities and others who may need help in the event of a disaster.
Older adults, people with disabilities, or people with other access or functional needs may be disproportionately disadvantaged during times of disaster. Many may not be able to jump in their vehicle and drive themselves away. They may need to arrange for transportation from a caretaker, a neighbor or family member who can help them gather emergency medications or equipment.
Supervisor Greg Cox will be joined Wednesday at Kearny High School by Jeff Toney, the director of the county’s Office of Emergency Services, and Calfire Division Chief Burke Kremensky to announce the Neighborhood Evacuation Team. The pilot program features a partnership with trained Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members who will help people in unincorporated areas with physical or age-related limitations to create a disaster plan to be used during an emergency evacuation.
CERT members will work with vulnerable groups that require additional assistance to practice their plan, identify emergency contacts and register for AlertSan Diego, the region’s alert and warning system.
The program’s materials were developed in conjunction with the OES by Kearny High School digital media design students.
— Staff report
