The Issue
In the first hours and days after Hurricane Sandy, the community of Red Hook organically came together and managed the initial response. There was a sincere lack of emergency reponse by city personnel leaving the neighborhood to come together on its own. Everything from wellness checks, to medical triage, to food distribution, and communications was organized by the community until disaster response and recovery workers were able to get to the isolated neighborhood. The Readiness Plan is based on the experience of community members who were present in Red Hook during and after Hurricane Sandy. In addition to a hurricane emergency, the plan is designed for a wide range of events including snow storms, heat waves, power outages, tornadoes, and earthquakes, among others.
The Solution
The Community Disaster Readiness Plan was developed by the community of Red Hook, for the community of Red Hook. One of the first of it's kind in the city. The purpose of the plan is to provide residents a single guide in preparation for and immediate recovery from future emergencies. It is not a government plan. Instead, it is a community companion to government plans, and addresses the critical 72 hours prior to and after a disaster, before formal government assistance is in place.
RRH Action
Resilient Red Hook believes that emergency preparedness, especially at the community level is a critical part of climate change action. Our neighborhood will likely see more events throughout our future that requires on-going preparedness to stay safe. We are a part of a larger coalition overseeing the Ready Red Hook Plan to ensure that it is kept active and updated as neighbors change and needs transform. The coalition is comprised of a wide range of residents, gov officials, business leaders, and support service facilities. Please see the Ready Red Hook page for more details.
We would like to acknowledge the process that was made possible by the Red Hook Coalition with assistance from EMMP, and through generous support of the American Red Cross, the Brooklyn Community Foundation/ Brooklyn Recovery Fund and the NYC Housing and Neighborhood Recovery Donor Collaborative [HNRDC]. Website design and graphics produced by thread collective, LLC supported by the Kresge Foundation. Illustrations by Tatjana Gall.
Links
+ http://www.sbidc.org/services/planning-resiliency/resiliency-programs/
