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5 <br /> WHEREAS, this year's theme is"Preparing for Older Adults" and Orange County has over 32,000 <br /> persons aged 60 and older in Orange County; and we know that older adults can face greater <br /> risks when it comes to the multitude of extreme weather events and emergencies we now face, <br /> especially if they are living alone, are lower-income, have a disability, or live in rural areas; <br /> NOW, THEREFORE, we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners, recognize Orange County <br /> Emergency Services - Emergency Management Division, along with the Orange County <br /> Department on Aging, and emergency managers throughout the nation, who have collaborated <br /> to recognize September as National Preparedness Month, and the Board joins them in <br /> encouraging Orange County residents to stay informed and prepared; <br /> FURTHERMORE, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners hereby declares <br /> September 2023 as "Orange County Preparedness Month." <br /> This the 51" Day of September 2023. <br /> Jamezetta Bedford, Chair <br /> Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> Sarah Pickhardt, Emergency Management Division Chief, thanked the Board for their <br /> words of support of the response to the shooting at UNC last week. She said their agency and <br /> partner agencies would not have been able to do what they did without the Board's leadership. <br /> Regarding the proclamation, she said preparedness is easy to forget about and it sometimes <br /> takes a tragic incident to draw attention to its importance. She said Emergency Managers across <br /> the country come together in September to try to highlight the need for personal preparedness <br /> plans. She said it takes the entire community including government, non-profits, the private sector, <br /> businesses, and individuals to have a whole community disaster preparedness. She thanked the <br /> Board for their support of this Proclamation. <br /> Chair Bedford said she has been putting a lot of proclamations on consent as Chair but <br /> saw an article about the fires in Maui and the unique impacts on aging and disabled community <br /> members and it seemed vital to bring attention to this issue. She said emergency preparedness <br /> is also relevant to the Climate Action Plan, which the Board will review later in the meeting. She <br /> said there are a lot of older adults and residents with disabilities in the county who may not receive <br /> emergency alerts and stressed the importance of reaching those folks in an emergency and to let <br /> them know about resources offered by the county. <br /> Janice Tyler said she read the same article as Chair Bedford, and it was heart-wrenching <br /> to hear the stories of the victims in Maui. She said there is a health fair on September 21 st at the <br /> Seymour Center, and they will be spreading the word on the importance of preparedness. <br /> Additionally, she said there are so many older adults who will not leave their pets during an <br /> emergency, so having a plan in place is vital. <br /> Sarah Pickhardt said that is a lesson learned from Hurricane Katrina, so now all shelters <br /> in Orange County are co-located so pets can come with residents seeking shelter during a <br /> disaster. <br /> A motion was made by Commissioner Hamilton, seconded by Commissioner Fowler, to <br /> approve and authorize the Chair to sign the proclamation. <br /> VOTED: UNANIMOUS <br />