“Interim” period of life begins, between before and after the Valley Fire
It has been 10 days now since the Valley Fire erupted in Lake County, California. I’ve been watching social media and have seen the outpouring of concern for afflicted “neighbors” from miles around the burn area. How do we help? Who do we notify to let the “authorities” know we have resources, money and personal energy to offer? I have a spare room in my dog-friendly home, an extra car, unused clothing, extra office supplies, a patient ear and a kind word or two. Who do I tell?
In the early chaos of evacuations, pet rescues and emergency feeding and sheltering I thought I would just be in the way so I have sat quietly by and held on to my urge to help. Indeed, within the first 48 hours of the fire’s outbreak on Sept. 12, Red Cross shelters were so overwhelmed with truckloads of food and piles of clothing that the request went out to stop bringing “things” and just send money. Many people tried to use Facebook and Twitter to get or give information. The instant response was heartwarming and many, many fire victims, both human and animal were helped. Today, evacuees are sifting through the ashes and trying to organize an interim period in their disrupted lives.
Volunteers at Community Market in Sebastopol pack donated food for delivery to Valley Fire shelters
We’ve seen other disasters and we know that there will be delays in insurance payments and relief assistance, bureaucratic snafus, denied and disputed claims, uncountable frustrated tempers flaring in uncoordinated relief offices across the state and even the country for months to come. It has been 10 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and some families are still living “interim” lives. Now that the dramatic photos of flaming houses, crying children and singed, bewildered animals have been replaced by images of drowning Syrian refugees, much of the initial outpouring of public compassion may have drained away. Many would-be helpers are feeling relieved that the benevolent, authoritative hands of government and large-scale relief agencies such as the Red Cross are caring for those we wanted to rush in and support just a fortnight ago. Local agencies such as Lake County Local Assistance Center are making a valiant effort but they were not evident to outsiders a week ago and it took me days to find them. Perhaps, in the aftermath of dramatic disasters such as the Valley Fire, private, sustained, coordinated contribution is needed as much, if not more, than it was 10 days ago.
With this thought in mind (and my extra room still unoccupied) I again sallied into cyberspace to try to connect with a few individuals whose burdens might be lightened by my modest resource sharing. To cut to the chase, I fear I’ve failed. I did find one voice at the end of a phone line who took down my name, phone number and offer of a room. FYI, this was Shelter Care Hotline: 707-262-1090. Perhaps my information will find a circuitous route to a person and a dog who need it. With luck it will reach someone with whom I can stand to cohabit for more than a day or two while he or she traverses that interim between former and future settled existence.
While I wait for a response I’ll continue to share my ideas are about how we might create a more effective, efficient local disaster response infrastructure — via this blog in several more posts. This is a resource distribution problem and all the tools for an immediately deployable, just-in-time supply chain utility are available in both business and the military. We need to use these technologies to create a public/private collaboration, ready to be activated when the next inevitable, local emergency strikes. This way, when that emotional punch-in-the-stomach hits me – when I see my neighbor in trouble and automatically reach out saying “how can I help?” – there will be an answer. Send canned goods here. Show up to volunteer there.
Found terrier seeks fire displaced owner
Describe the skills you’re offering on this list. Post a picture of the frantic dog you are feeding and where to find him at this URL. Enter your temporary housing opportunity here. Throw your unique ideas into the bin over there. The time to get organized is before the disaster, not during it. And no, I couldn’t find such a response infrastructure at the Red Cross. If it exists it’s a very well-kept secret. Whether we find a workable utility someone else has built and simply publicize it, or build a new one, this is a task society needs done — now. We’re talking one, central, web site with several empty databases to be replicated for specific incident use, that can be filled with local resources when needed. It won’t take a lot of people to build it but it will take everyone in “the crowd” to spread the word once we have the prototype. Information technology can’t solve all of humanity’s problem but this is one that we can nail. I want it in place very, very soon. After all, the next fire, flood or explosion may happen on my street!