GHS/OCD Hosts Poster Contest for 2024 National Preparedness Month

Throughout the month of September, Guam will join the nation in celebrating National Preparedness Month (NPM) and promoting the importance of planning and preparing for man-made and natural disasters such as typhoons, earthquakes, tsunamis, and floods. This year’s NPM theme is, “Empowering Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities to Prepare for Risks and Disasters.”

The Offices of Guam Homeland Security and Civil Defense (GHS/OCD) will host a poster contest throughout NPM for Guam based schools, with opportunities to win a prize at the end of the month.

Elementary School Poster Contest

WHO MAY JOIN – Any student enrolled in any Guam based elementary school.

Categories:

Pre-K, Kinder and 1st Grade
2nd and 3rd Grade
4th and 5th Grade

Middle School Poster Contest

WHO MAY JOIN – Any student enrolled in any Guam based middle school (6th– 8th grade).

High School Poster Contest

WHO MAY JOIN – Any student enrolled in any Guam based high school (9th – 12th grade).

POSTER SPECIFICATIONS

Overall dimensions shall be letter size, 8.5’’x11’’, card stock or illustration board. Poster must be no thicker than 1⁄2 an inch.
Stenciled, traced, computer generated or commercially manufactured stick-on lettering or graphics are prohibited.
Posters must incorporate the theme of “Empowering Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities to Prepare for Risks and Disasters.”
- Posters should have special emphasis on how you and your family can prepare for a disaster (i.e. What do you do before a disaster, how do you communicate before and during a disaster, etc.)
- Parents/guardians are encouraged to visit ready.gov (http://www.ready.gov/make-a-plan) for some contributing ideas.
- Parents/guardians should not complete the poster board for the children, rather, help them formulate ideas.
- Posters will be judged on originality, the focus on the emergency preparedness theme, and the creativity of the poster.

IDENTIFICATION - All entries must include the following information on the back of the poster: Name, Age, Grade, School, Contact Information for Teacher, and Title of Poster (properly label entries upon submission).

DEADLINE - Entries are to be dropped off to the Guam Homeland Security/Office of Civil Defense in Agana Heights or emailed to stephen.cahill@ghs.guam.gov no later than: 5pm, Friday, September 13, 2024. Any entry submitted after this day will not be considered eligible.

For contest information, contact Stephen Cahill at (671) 475-9600 or via email at stephen.cahill@ghs.guam.gov.

X Flooding is a temporary overflowing of water onto land that is normally dry. Flooding may happen with only a few inches of water, or it may cover a house to the rooftop. There are many possible causes of floods including heavy rain, coastal storms and storm surge, waterway overflow from being blocked with debris, or overflow of levees, dams, or waste water systems. Flooding can occur slowly over many days or happen very quickly with little or no warning, called flash floods.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/floods

Wildfire

Regularly clean the roof and gutters.
Maintain an area approximately 30’ away from you home that is free of anything that will burn, such as wood piles, dried leaves, newspapers and other brush.
Connect garden hoses long enough to reach any area of the home and fill garbage cans, tubs, or other large containers with water.
Review your homeowner's insurance policy and also prepare/update a list of your home's contents.

Fire Weather

Turn on your TV/radio. You’ll get the latest weather updates and emergency instructions.
Know where to go. If you are ordered to evacuate, know the route to take and have plan of where you will go. Check-in with your friends and family.
Keep your car fueled, in good condition, and stocked with emergency supplies and a change of clothes.

Drought

Conserve water

Take shorter showers.

Turn off the water while brushing your teeth or shaving.
Run the washer less frequently and only when you have a full load.
Water your lawn less frequently and do so when the temperature is cooler in the early morning or late evening.
When you run the tap to heat or cool water, keep a pitcher to store the water and use it to water plants.
Avoid washing your car.

Practice fire prevention

Don't set off fireworks when conditions are dry.
Deposit cigarette butts in the proper receptacle to avoid starting a
Pour water over camp fires and backyard fire pits to ensure they are completely out before leaving them unattended.

Follow directions from local officials. If there are restrictions on water usage, be sure to heed them.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/wildfires and https://www.ready.gov/drought

X
Typhoons/Hurricanes are massive storm systems that form over the water and move toward land. Threats from typhoons/hurricanes include high winds, heavy rainfall, storm surge, coastal and inland flooding, and rip currents.

“Hurricanes” form in the Atlantic Northeast Pacific region and “Typhoons” form in the Northwest Pacific Region. These large storms are call cyclones in other parts of the world.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/hurricanes.