Have You Mapped Your Neighborhood Yet? Here's What to Do

Map Your Neighborhood (MYN) is the program selected by Bainbridge Prepares and its partners—the City of Bainbridge Island (COBI) and Bainbridge Island Fire Department (BIFD)—for structuring our community's preparation for a large-scale emergency. MYN operates on the premise that prepared households can form prepared neighborhoods to provide assistance and support during the early hours and days following a disaster and over the long-term as well.The residents of a prepared neighborhood know exactly what to do in preparation for and after a disaster:

• They know what supplies to have on hand.
• They know who in the neighborhood has special skills and tools that might help the community.
• They know where propane shutoff valves are located so they can reduce or eliminate the potential for post-event fires.
• They know where to meet up after a disaster to check in with one another and offer assistance.
• They know which residents have special needs who might need extra help and where senior citizens and children live who might be alone during a disaster.
• They know where pets and livestock live so they can make sure animals are cared for too.
• They know what emergency hub to report to for additional support and to take people who have sustained serious injuries.

If your neighborhood is one of the 60 percent on the island still in need of organizing, here's what to do:

1. Determine the parameters of your neighborhood (about 15 to 20 homes or the entire floor of an apartment building, for example).
2. Email Anne LeSage, the COBI Emergency Coordinator, at alesage@bainbridgewa.gov to start the process.
3. Coordinate with Anne on dates and times that will work for a presentation to the neighborhood given by MYN trainers.
4. Organize your MYN training meeting for the selected date. Reach out to all households in the defined neighborhood to invite them.
5. Send Anne the addresses of all households included in the plan.

That's it! Once you've mapped your neighborhood and received your training, you and your neighbors can keep the ball rolling. Make sure to meet periodically and keep an update contact list.Download the MYN Toolkit here.