Burlingame residents flock to Disaster Drill
More than 530 Burlingame residents demonstrated their dedication to emergency preparedness on Saturday, Oct. 12, when they showed up for the seventh annual Burlingame Disaster Drill. The turnout set a new record for drill participation with last year’s turnout being 424. Participants in this drill joined one of 32 neighborhood groups throughout the city.
The purpose of the drill was to instruct neighborhood residents on how they can team up to face anything that happens following a major emergency. The idea behind this kind of instruction is that in the wake of a large disaster, it is possible that emergency assistance may not be available for at least 72 hours. Drill participants also got to try out an emergency communications network staffed by local Ham radio operators. This communication system has been designed to enable neighbors to escalate requests for help from first responders as well as receive official alerts regarding emergency operations.
Many of Burlingame’s public agencies and leaders participated in the drill. Those agencies included the Central County Fire Department, Burlingame Police Department, Burlingame’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members. Participating leaders included Mayor Donna Colson, City Manager Lisa Goldman, Council member Michael Brownrigg and Kay Coskey, vice president of the Burlingame School District Board of Trustees.
Burlingame Neighborhood Network always at work
The Burlingame Neighborhood Network organizes this annual drill with the goal of “building community resilience.” The network’s website points to recent studies finding that personal relationships between community members can improve survival in the event of an earthquake or other disaster.
The Burlingame Neighborhood Network has been busy with activities other than its annual drill. In fact, the group has distributed emergency kits worth $550 each to neighborhood groups with a track record of involvement in emergency preparedness activities. The Burlingame City Council has allocated funds for 20 kits, and the network has currently distributed these kits to 18 neighborhood groups.
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