Submitted by the Las Placitas Association
WELCOME PREP (Placitas Resiliance and Emergency Preparedness Alliance)
Las Placitas Association is thrilled to welcome another “boots on the ground” organization tackling the issue of emergency preparedness in Placitas. Placitas is considered a community at high risk for wildfire. Many have worked over the years to bring about programs to reduce the fuel loads on Sandia Mountain and in Las Huertas Canyon, but these are long-range projects facing government funding and personnel shortages. PREP brings another layer of expertise to the table, already taking part in stakeholder and community meetings. Residents are learning what they can do to mitigate risk on their own property and how to prepare for an emergency (wildfire, flood, pipeline accident, etc.), but as we watch the West burn this summer, we fear an emergency could strike before we are prepared. LPA/KUPR reached out to PREP and the San Antonio de las Huertas Land Grant to begin a conversation about the emergency alert infrastructure in Placitas and where we might be vulnerable. We have no sirens and CodeRED doesn’t help if folks aren’t signed up or have unreliable phone/cell service. Radio alerts can help, but what if the power is off? Do you know your neighbors well enough to knock on doors if that’s what it comes down to? In rural areas, we need multiple ways to alert folks and multiple ways to get information. We are working to identify those we can impact at the local level as if our lives depend on it. You will be hearing more about this…