Top 5 of 2017

As the year ends, everyone is shuffling things around trying to decide what can wait until the dust settles in 2018. To help you catch up on things from this past year, we’ve put together a quick list of our top blog posts. Complete with quick takeaways, you can read the full posts later yet still know what happened.

 

 

The deadline for compliance passed, but we know not everyone is where they want to be for preparedness. The same things that we suggested before the deadline apply now. “Disaster preparedness popularity comes in waves. Immediately after a disaster strikes nearby, people dust off their emergency plans and spend a few weeks talking about them. Then, preparedness falls by the wayside, as other priorities resurface.”

 

 

 

Hurricane Harvey caught Texas unprepared this summer, making it a good case to learn from, as were Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Both of those hurricanes impacted the decision not to evacuate the city as Harvey approached. 9-1-1 call centers were completely overwhelmed for days after the hurricane left town, and there was no backup plan initiated.

 

 

 

Myths circulate throughout any industry, and emergency preparedness is no different. This year we had a lot to address to keep everyone on the same page, and this blog post tackled some of the top questions.

 

These myths were debunked:

 

 

And these questions answered:

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, there were a few active shooter incidents this year that make training for them seem like a good idea. But when a senior leader broadly states they want to do one, they are actually relying on the professionals to explain why it is, or is not a good idea. You have to crawl before you can walk, and a “full-scale” anything before having a comprehensive plan in place is asking for trouble.

 

 

 

We sure had enough situations to learn from this year, but it we don’t take the time to evaluate and address the lessons, we will see a repeat of the same mistakes over and over again. Preparing (and sharing!) lessons learned in the form of after-action reports are vital.

 

 

As a quick reminder, here are some reasons AARs keep us relevant:

 

 

Ready to see what’s coming in 2018? Make sure you follow us on Facebook for all the latest updates.