First responders who are well-prepared will have the peace of mind to focus on the task at hand, rather than worrying about whether their family is taken care of. First responders can also serve as role models for other members of the community, leading by example to encourage preparedness.
- Build an emergency supply kit.
- Make a family emergency plan.
- Be informed about the types of emergencies that you may be called upon to respond to, and teach your family about what they should do when a disaster strikes.
- Prepare for any special considerations like individuals with access or functional needs, older adults, children, ands pets.
Agency Preparedness
Organizational Preparedness Program Work Plan Development Guidance
A successful organizational preparedness program needs:
- A clear vision
- Actionable objectives and goals
- Defined deliverables and timelines
- Regular reviews
- Identify potential obstacle and challenges
This process requires the buy-in of leadership and the agency to bring about the necessary cultural change in the organization.
Take the time to outline how the program will operate and what the expectations are for your organization using the Ready Responder Toolkit (PDF - 2.8Mb).
Law Enforcement
Resources
- Join the National Preparedness Community First Responder Community of Practice
- Download the Ready Responder presentation: Law Enforcement's Guide - Preparing Your Family for Emergencies
The "Ready Responder: Law Enforcement's Guide, Preparing Your Family for Emergencies," presentation is designed to provide agencies with a customizable template to promote emergency preparedness information to law enforcement and their families.
Training
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) offers self-paced courses free-of-charge. The courses below may have a specific interest to the law enforcement community. For a complete list of courses please visit: Emergency Management Institute Course Catalog
- IS-3: Radiological Emergency Management
- IS-5.A: An Introduction to Hazardous Materials
- IS-15.B: Special Events Contingency Planning for Public Safety Agencies
- IS-22: Are You Ready? An In-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness
- IS-36: Multihazard Planning for Childcare
- IS-100.LEB: Introduction to the Incident Command System (ICS 100) for Law Enforcement
- IS-240.A: Leadership & Influence
- IS-301: Radiological Emergency Response
- IS-302: Modular Emergency Radiological Response Transportation Training
- IS-340: Hazardous Materials Prevention
- IS-360: Preparing for Mass Casualty Incidents: A Guide for Schools, Higher Education, and Houses of Worship
- IS-362.A: Multi-Hazard Emergency Planning for Schools
- IS-395: FEMA Risk Assessment Database
- IS-450: Emergency Preparedness for Federal Employees
- IS-450.NC: Emergency Preparedness for Federal Employees in the National Capital Region
- IS-453: Introduction to Homeland Security Planning
- IS-546.A: Continuity of Operations Awareness Course
- IS-547.A: Introduction to Continuity of Operations
- IS-650.A: Building Partnerships with Tribal Governments
- IS-700.A: National Incident Management System (NIMS) An Introduction
- IS-703.A: NIMS Resource Management
- IS-775: EOC Management and Operations
- IS-813: Emergency Support Functions (ESF) #13 - Public Safety and Security Annex
- IS-820: Introduction to NRF Support Annexes
- IS-821: Critical Infrastructure and Key Resources Support Annex
- IS-870: Dams Sector: Crisis Management
- IS-871: Dams Sector: Security Awareness
- IS-872: Dams Sector: Protective Measures
- IS-890.A: Introduction to the Interagency Security Committee (ISC)
- IS-912: Retail Security Awareness: Understanding the Hidden Hazards
- IS-913: Critical Infrastructure Protection: Achieving Results through Partnership and Collaboration
- IS-914: Surveillance Awareness: What You Can Do
- IS-915: Protecting Critical Infrastructure Against Insider Threats
- IS-916: Critical Infrastructure Security: Theft and Diversion – What You Can Do
- IS-921: Implementing Critical Infrastructure Protection Programs
Fire Fighters
Training
- The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) offers self-paced courses free-of-charge. For a complete list of courses please visit: Emergency Management Institute Course Catalog
- The National Fire Administration (NFA) offers online courses. To view a list of NFA Certificate eligible courses please visit: National Fire Administration Course Catalog
Resources
- Join the National Preparedness Community First Responder Community of Practice
- Ready Responder presentation: Firefighter's Guide- Preparing Your Family for Emergencies
The "Ready Responder: Firefighter's Guide, Preparing Your Family for Emergencies," presentation is designed to provide agencies with a customizable template to promote emergency preparedness information to firefighters and their families.
Ready Responder Toolkit
The Ready Responder Toolkit (PDF – 2.8Mb) is designed to provide emergency response agencies with planning tools to help prepare first responders and their families for emergencies. These tools are flexible and customizable. They can be used by planners to meet the specific needs of their agency or department.
- Ready Responder presentations: Law Enforcement and Firefighter's- Preparing Your Family for Emergencies (updated 9/13)
- Ready Responder Toolkit (PDF – 2.8Mb)
- Bill stuffer (PDF – 534Kb)
- Event flyer with a picture of children (PDF – 244Kb)
- Event flyer with a picture of the emergency supply kit (PDF – 141Kb)
- Event flyer with a picture of a responder with family (PDF – 407Kb)
- Event flyer with a picture of responders (PDF - 476Kb)
- Informational Business Card (PDF – 62Kb)
- Poster with a picture of children (PDF - 427Kb)
- Poster with a picture of responders (PDF - 530Kb)
- Poster with a picture of a responder with family (PDF – 635Kb)
- Media Information Template (PDF – 199Kb)
- Press Release Template (PDF – 199Kb)
- Department Letter Template (PDF – 170Kb)
- Internal Email Template (PDF –176Kb)