Think About
It - Website Exploration
As we begin to think about being
active and prepared, explore the
website for The National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, and the links that are
specific to your region or area of interest to learn more about health
(physical and psychosocial) and environmental impacts or preparedness needs for
these disaster precipitators.
Wildfires
There
are a number of health and environmental impacts associated with exposure to
wildfires. Health impacts include exposure to smoke. The principle public
health threat from contact to wildfire smoke is particulate matter (PM)
exposure. The effects of PM exposure ranges from eye and respiratory tract
irritation to more serious disorders, including reduced lung function,
bronchitis, exacerbation of asthma and heart failure, and premature death.
Those especially vulnerable to smoke exposure include children, pregnant women,
and the elderly. Environmental impacts from wildfires include the destruction
of homes, wildlife habitat and timber. Additionally, wildfires pollute the air
with emissions that are harmful to human health, and release carbon dioxide – a
key greenhouse gas – into the atmosphere.
Wildfires
are unpredictable. The strength and/or direction of a wildfire can change at
any given moment, and communities that seem clear of danger can suddenly need
to evacuate. The uncertain nature of wildfires can be extremely stressful to
people that are directly affected by these disasters. Stress is also caused by
the fact that sometimes death and destruction of property are unavoidable when
a wildfire takes place. These examples demonstrate why it is common for people
to experience intense emotions such as shock and/or denial directly after experiencing
a wildfire. Even after these initial feelings subside, people often have
anxiety that results in moods swings, or they may experience acute symptoms
from stress such as headaches, nausea, and/or chest pains.
To
prepare for wildfire season it is a good idea for people to have enough food on
hand to last several days. This will minimize the need for people to drive to
other locations. It is also important to have at least a five-day supply of
medication for the same reason. Food that is stored for use during the fire season should not require frying or broiling, since these activities can add particles to indoor air. Additionally, state and local public health agencies should consider running pre-season public service announcements, or new releases that advise communities on how to best prepare for a wildfire season.
California
continues to experience an increasing number of wildfires each year,
particularly during the months of July through October. These wildfires are a
side effect of increasing temperatures resulting from climate change. As public
health professionals working in the state of California, it will behoove us to
learn more about the health and environmental impacts from this type of
disaster, as well as how to best prepare for wildfires in the future.
In California, we have the Disaster Healthcare Volunteers Site, where
healthcare professionals and those with healthcare experience can express a
desire to be a volunteer should a disaster happen. Is there something similar
where you live?
In my local
area of Davis, California we have the UC Davis Veterinary Emergency Response
Team (VERT). VERT is a volunteer organization that is focused on
training others including students, fire service personnel, animal
services, and animal emergency response teams in all aspects of animal related
disasters including evacuation training, animal sheltering, triage, medical
evaluation and treatment of injuries related to fire, flood, and technical
large animal rescue. VERT has been activated on a local basis for assistance in
declared states of emergency or animal emergencies when additional expertise is
needed for technical rescue. Having an organization such as VERT, that both trains
and assists emergency response personnel during disasters, is vital to
successfully evacuating, treating, and sheltering animals during a disaster.
References:
· The
National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health. Knowledge and
Learning. Wild Fires. Retrieved from: https://www.usuhs.edu/ncdmph-learn/KnowledgeLearning/2013-Wildfires.htm
· Air Now.
Fires and Your Health. Retrieved from: https://www.airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=topics.smoke_events
· American
Psychological Association. Help Center. Wildfire. Retrieved from: http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/wildfire.aspx
· National
Center for Disaster Medicine & Public Health. Knowledge and Learning.
Resilience Through Learning. Retrieved from: https://www.usuhs.edu/ncdmph-learn/KnowledgeLearning/ResilienceThruLearning.htm
·
Yolo County. How Can I Help? Retrieved from. http://www.yolocounty.org/government/office-of-emergency-services/how-can-i-help-
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