NEW VERSION OF THE LEAFLET - ENGLISH

27 May 2025 St Louis Tornado response EDIT:  A lot of people do not seem to understand what FEMA does, and doesn't do.  FEMA assesses damage and coordinates with other disaster agencies and services and with the police.  It communicates to the media.  It handles grants and loans for repairs and rebuilding, usually by hiring temporaries in the community to process the applications and take care of administrative tasks.  

It is not a comprehensive emergency service and when George W. Bush created the Department of Homeland Security he put FEMA under that agency.  That is one of the reasons it was not able to respond well to Katrina, and why it has not operated at full capacity in the last 22 years.  And Trump's budget slash has effected it as well.  

Waiting for a disaster to strike and then trying to respond and waiting for FEMA to show up and take over is not a plan. Also, the city did not have any plan in place.  I know, I have been trying to talk to them about this for 5 years and following all of the emergency response committees. They have no emergency fund, no slush fund, and refuse to even consider using the interest from the Rams and ARPA funds. (Not the funds, the interest.) 

We have to get this through recovery as it is, but please St. Louis let's make sure we build a city-wide community response network and demand funding for it. 

End EDIT 

For the plan, see the next post below (or click "older posts").  For the complete plan, and how to organize, fund, and set up the database, contact me at the email address in the heading (bookemonsterslpl@gmail) 

Are You Ready for an Emergency?  

Disasters like floods, industrial accidents, tornadoes, and power grid failures can happen at any time. What if several happen at once? Our society depends on electricity, and most grocery stores only have three days' worth of food.  

Make a Family Emergency Plan  

Decide where to meet if disaster strikes or if you get separated. Choose a backup meeting spot in case the first location is unsafe. Plan for no phone or internet access—have a way to leave messages. Make sure everyone knows where gas and water shut off valves are and how to turn them off. 

Check Your Neighborhood  

Examine your neighborhood in a six-block radius. Ask yourself: Can local health centers and public buildings stay open in a crisis? Do electricians, plumbers, or medical professionals live nearby? Who in your community is most vulnerable and may need help? Where will you meet if phones and the internet go down?  

Every Community Needs a Plan  

Call your mayor and alderperson/councilperson to ask about local emergency plans. If an evacuation happens, are there buses or plans for those without cars? Evacuations should be mapped in 6 block sections of the city, and should include disabled, hospitalized, transients, and incarcerated persons.

Do city workers live in your area, or will outside help take too long to arrive?  Identify a local emergency shelter (school, gym, or library). Make sure someone local has access to it. Organize water, food, medical supplies, shelter, and backup power (solar panels, generators). Set up a backup communication system (like HAM radios). Work with local stores to ensure fair distribution of emergency supplies. Make sure the National Guard is instructed to distribute food and supplies to prevent looting.  

Survival Requires Teamwork  

Even if you have supplies, disasters like floods and tornadoes can destroy them. You will need help! In an emergency all differences and arguments must be set aside. Talk to family, neighbors, and local leaders about preparing before disaster strikes.

Act Now—Don't Wait Until It's Too Late!  

MAKE A PLAN! 

 https://emergencyprepsaintlouismo.blogspot.com/ 

Original document - to print copy and paste and use portrait orientation and half inch .5 margins in MS Word.  If you have to reformat, please use Comic Sans as it is easiest for those with reading disorders like dyslexia. 

You can find the old leaflet here WHEN THERE IS AN EMERGENCY/ CUANDO HAY UNA EMERGENCIA : IS YOUR COMMUNITY READY?

Also see https://dearsaintlouis.blogspot.com/2025/05/the-emergency-plan-you-should-have.html

THE COMPLETE PLAN FOR EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES IN ST LOUIS MISSOURI

This can be adapted for any city or town.   

 

Break the geographic area into 6 block sections.  

 

Divide the population into units of 250, with smaller units of 50 and then 10 each.  

 

This way you ensure that every area and every person is accounted for.  There will be some overlap.   

 

City-wide coordination takes place through the "captains" (or whatever you choose to call them) of 250, and the neighborhoods through the smaller groups of 10 and 50.  The captains of 10 report to the captains of 50, and the 50s to the 250.   

 

Make sure there is back up in case a captain is absent.  

 

There are different ways to coordinate with city officials, the police and first responders, and FEMA through larger groups of 1000 and 10,000, or by wards.  The police have a plan that works with FEMA where command centers are established throughout the city.   

 

Should FEMA or city officials and police that are not residents be absent, each neighborhood needs to have its own plan and resources, and be able to coordinate independently with adjacent neighborhoods.  

 

This coordination includes evacuation plans as well as shelters, supplies, and charging stations that include solar panels and alternate forms of communication, like hard-wired, true landline phones and HAM radios, etc.  

 

The National Guard and police should have authorization from local businesses and work with community captains to ensure that there is no looting due to shortages, and that supplies are distributed and records kept for reimbursement.   

 

However, each community should have some resources in reserve so that this is a last resort.  

 

These plans should also include incapacitated, transients, and incarcerated persons.  No one should be overlooked or left behind to suffer.  

 

The Gateway card ID that was just put into legislation in the city of St. Louis is similar to the one that I have been working for since 2018, but which was meant to be part of this plan, as well as other city services. (For example, city library cards and voter registration, which would be done automatically for any address changes. And your Ameren grid location, etc.)   

  

The ID should include your emergency grid and unit information, as well as any medical or other issues.   

  

The card is meant to be funded through ARPA.  City residents should be prospered directly, not through outsourcing to private businesses and orgs. That should include this network of 1,240 residents that are prepared to oversee 250 individual people each, in case of natural disasters or other emergencies. Each of these captains should receive a stipend for this work. $12-15 million allocated to creating this type of network would prepare us for the next pandemic, tornado, flood, etc.  

 

Emergency planning builds strong and sustainable communities. Every person should have an emergency plan for themselves and their families, but without a neighborhood or community plan too much is left to chance. Call your mayor and your alder or council person today!

For the complete plan- including how to set it up (database, ID cards, how to fund it, and how to promote and organize it) contact me here.

 

To donate to this project, see the sidebar for my paypal and venmo, or contribute to the fundraiser for A Better World, the origin of this community plan: A BETTER WORLD FOR EVERYONE https://seanachaid.gumroad.com/