Resolve to be Ready 2015

A study conducted by the University of Scranton found that nearly half of all Americans make New Year's resolutions to improve some aspect of their lives. In 2015, resolve to increase your preparedness for disasters and let the Ready Campaign help keep your resolution going!

This year's Resolve to be Ready Campaign encourages families to prepare throughout the year for winter, spring, summer and fall weather hazards. The campaign provides tools and information that people can use at home, at work, and to prepare the whole community.

Download the Seasonal Preparedness Calendar so that you can plan to be prepared all year long. Other items in this year's campaign are:

• Resolve to be Ready shareable graphics ;
• The Winter Weather Social Media Toolkit; and
• The Holiday Preparedness Social Media Toolkit.

Resolve to be Ready will be sharing social media messages on Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #Ready2015 , so be sure to follow along. You can also add to the preparedness conversation by using hashtag #PrepareAthon ! To learn more about how you can participate in the Resolve to be Ready Campaign, visit ready.gov .

Need a New Year's resolution idea? Try this – Practice the steps necessary for disaster preparedness by planning an America's PrepareAthon! event and register it on the America's PrepareAthon! website. Use the FREE tools, tips and resources found on the site to help you plan an event for your community, workplace or organization!

Christmas Tree Takedown

After-Christmas sales aren't the only thing to watch for once the holiday season ends. You should also be aware of a serious post-holiday hazard – keeping a dried out Christmas tree in your home or stored in a garage! Dried out Christmas trees are a fire hazard and should be disposed of promptly. According to the National Fire Protection Association , nearly 40 percent of Christmas tree home fires occur in January. When it comes to proper tree disposal , there are several environmentally sound ways to do so, including:

• Drop off at recycling centers;
• Curbside pick-up; and
• Mulching programs.

Do not attempt to burn your Christmas tree in a fireplace or wood stove as a means of disposal! This may result in a chimney fire as a burning tree is hard to control and may burn faster than expected.

If tree recycling or pick-up programs are unavailable in your area, please contact your city government or Citizen Corps Council for recommendations.

Emergency Preparedness Apps

Mobile applications have become more useful in keeping emergency preparedness information readily available to the public. Recently, the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a new mobile preparedness app called "Lantern Live." The app helps consumers quickly find and share critical information about nearby gas stations and power outages during energy emergencies. “Lantern Live” allows users to:

• Report operational status of local gas stations;
• Find fuel;
• Look up local utility power outage maps; and
• Access useful disaster tips.

The DOE says future versions and updates of “Lantern Live” are likely to include the ability to crowdsource information on the status of gas stations through standardized social media hashtags.

“Lantern Live” is currently free to download for Android users via Google Play .

Looking for more preparedness apps? Keep disaster information at your fingertips with mobile apps from FEMA and the American Red Cross .

Dates for Your Calendar!

• Jan 20 – 24: National Sheriffs' Association Winter Conference – Washington, DC
• Jan 21 – 22: EO427 CERT Program Manager – Emmitsburg, MD
• Feb 10 – 12: International Disaster Conference & Expo – New Orleans, LA
• Feb 19 – 22: Virginia Fire and Rescue Conference – Virginia Beach, VA
• Feb 23 – 27: Combined E0427, CERT Program Manager and E0428, CERT Train-the-Trainer courses – Emmitsburg, MD