- Taylor Gonsalves
- Communications Director
- (916) 319-2053
- Taylor.Gonsalves@asm.ca.gov
(Sacramento, CA) – Today, Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez (D – Pomona) presented ACR 112 on the Assembly Floor, proclaiming September as California Emergency Preparedness Month. This proclamation aligns the State with the nationally-recognized Emergency Preparedness Month, an effort to educate the public, prepare for disasters, and raise awareness of the importance of planning and preparing for emergencies.
“As Chair of the Emergency Management Committee, I am proud to declare September as California Emergency Preparedness Month. I always say that California is a disaster-prone state, and have stressed the need to prepare for the event two disasters strike simultaneously. Just this past weekend, while Southern California was already being impacted by Hurricane Hilary, a 5.1 magnitude earthquake struck the Ojai region, further solidifying our need for preparation of concurrent disasters,” stated Assemblymember Rodriguez.
Emergency Preparedness Month provides an annual opportunity to educate and empower Californians to prepare for and respond to emergencies. In preparing Californians for an emergency, we should all learn how to make plans to ensure access to shelter, food, water, backup power, and transportation for ourselves, our families, and our animals.
This year, FEMA’s Ready Campaign is highlighting the need to prepare older adults for disasters. As many older adults have specific needs during a disaster, the Ready Campaign has provided vital information to help you plan ahead.
“Having served as a first responder for over 30 years, I have experience responding to several types of disasters and was actually deployed to aid the responses to Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. Like all disasters, the aftermath of these events provided many lessons for the future and solidified the importance of preparation. California is not immune to any disaster, and Emergency Preparedness Month is a reminder of how we can plan ahead to prevent complete devastation when one does strike,” added Assemblymember Rodriguez.
Assemblymember Rodriguez (Twitter) represents the 53rd Assembly District which includes the cities of Chino, Montclair, Ontario, Pomona, and Upland. He is Chair of the Assembly Committee on Emergency Management.