Federal ACL official urges older adults to prepare for earthquakes, storms and outages

Louise Ryan, regional administrator for Region 10 of the Administration for Community Living, told attendees the top disaster risks for Washington seniors are earthquakes and winter storms and urged practical preparations. Ryan described the Great ShakeOut earthquake drill scheduled for 10:17 and recommended "drop, cover and hold on" where possible; she also gave specific adaptations for people who use wheelchairs or rely on medical equipment.

Ryan urged households to create a family communication plan, maintain a two-week emergency kit that includes medications and comfort items, safeguard important documents and plan alternative refrigeration for temperature-sensitive medicines. She emphasized identifying a support network that includes neighbors, caregivers and at least one person outside the immediate area who may be able to assist in an evacuation.

Ryan highlighted FEMA's resources and an emergency-preparedness toolkit for people living with dementia developed by the National Alzheimer's Disease Resource Center with ACL funding. She also described pilot work to support older adults in wildfire response and the need to consider both physical protections and social supports during and after disasters.

The ACL presentation concluded with a short question-and-answer session about which agencies oversee emergency planning for nursing facilities and whether FEMA provides outreach materials in bulk; Ryan said nursing homes and assisted-living facilities are inspected by Residential Care Services (state) and she would check whether FEMA can provide printed brochures for distribution through area agencies on aging.