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Councilmember Susan Wengraf
Newsletter #41
October, 2014 |
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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
This newsletter is devoted to earthquakes, Ebola, and elections....three issues that are deservedly receiving a lot of attention in the media currently. Please take time to read through the articles and if you have any questions, please call me at my office at 981-7160. I always welcome your feedback, ideas and suggestions.
Best Regards, .jpg)
Susan Wengraf 
Included in this newsletter is information about: |
Earthquake Preparedness Day - Saturday, October 18th
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On the 25th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake, the Berkeley Fire Department and Community Emergency Response Team invite you to make a dent in disaster preparation.
The Berkeley CERT Citywide Exercise provides participants an opportunity to practice disaster response in their own households, neighborhoods and businesses. All individuals or community groups are encouraged to participate regardless of their level of CERT training or previous participation in City disaster preparedness activities.
Register yourself as an individual, as a neighborhood group, or as an organization to be an official participant for the 2014 exercise. When you register you will automatically be entered to win disaster preparedness prizes! Click here to register and for more information.
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Sign Up for the City's Emergency Messaging System
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The BENS messaging system will be tested soon
As part of Berkeley's Citywide emergency response exercise on Saturday October 18, the City will send a test message to phones and email addresses using the Berkeley Emergency Notification System, a critical way to get information during an actual emergency.
The October 18 test of the emergency messaging system, known as BENS, will only involve phone numbers and email addresses that have subscribed to receive BENS. We encourage all Berkeley community members to sign up to the system, which can send emails as well as voice, SMS text and TTY/TDD alerts to phones.
BENS, along with 1610 AM radio and local news media, is one of the tools that the City of Berkeley uses to communicate emergency information and instructions to the Berkeley community in the event of a threat to their life, health and/or safety. The City urges residents and visitors to sign up for BENS, but no one system is guaranteed in an emergency. Make sure you know how to find emergency information from multiple places. The city also uses 1610 AM Radio as well as communication with local news media to spread information in multiple ways.
BENS is the City of Berkeley's primary messaging system during an emergency. It is distinct from Nixle, which Berkeley Police use on a routine basis to send messages to the community.
For more information:
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November Ballot
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 The November 4th election is just two weeks away. Absentee ballots are very slowly being delivered. The City Clerk advises that if you have not received your absentee ballot by Monday, October 20, please call the Alameda County registrar of voters at 510-267-8683 and request that they mail you a new one. If you would like to see my guide to voting in Berkeley, please email me at: [email protected] and I will send you my recommendation s.
Note: It's not too late! You can still register to vote online. All you need is a valid California driver's license or a California issued ID card and you can register on the Secretary of State's website: http://registertovote.ca.gov/. October 20 is the last day to register in order to vote in this year's election. Important Election Reminders for Berkeley Voters! Please be advised that the City Clerk Department will no longer serve as an Early Voting site for elections. To cast your vote prior to Election Day, you must obtain a Vote-by-Mail ballot from the Registrar of Voter's office at the County Courthouse in Oakland. Please contact the Alameda County Registrar of Voters at 510-267-8683 or www.acgov.org/rov for complete details. If you received a Vote-by-Mail Ballot in the mail, your ballot must be RECEIVED by the Registrar of Voters by the close of the polls at 8:00 p.m. on Election Day. You may drop off your voted Vote-by-Mail Ballot at any of the following locations (your ballot must be sealed inside the yellow return envelope and signed: - The Registrar of Voters' Office at 1225 Fallon Street in County Courthouse in Oakland - cross streets Oak and 12th (until 8:00p.m.)
- Any polling place in Alameda County (until 8:00 p.m.)
Call the Registrar of Voters at 510-267-8683 or click on the links below for the following questions: Polls open on Tuesday, November 4th at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m. Please Remember to Vote!
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Flu Shots
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 Last year 52,000 people in the U.S. died from complications of the flu. October is a great month to get a flu shot to minimize your chances of getting the flu. Shots are available at your doctor's office, local pharmacies, and clinics throughout the city. The costs are minimal.
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Ebola
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The recent Ebola cases in Texas have attracted a lot of media attention, and people here in Berkeley are curious to know if we are prepared to handle a medical crisis like Dallas has experienced.
In response to questions from concerned citizens, the City Manager issued the following statement regarding our efforts to prepare for such an unlikely event:
THE RISK OF EBOLA IS EXTREMELY LOW IN CALIFORNIA, BUT AGENCIES AND MEDICAL PROVIDERS HAVE BEEN PREPARING
There are no reports of Ebola in the United States outside of Dallas, Texas, and the risk to residents in Berkeley and California is extremely low. But federal, state and local officials are working to ensure that we are prepared should someone become ill locally. The Centers for Disease Control is aggressively managing the situation nationwide, and they have created a useful, continuously updated, and comprehensive website about Ebola to provide more information. In addition, the Berkeley Public Health Division has been preparing and will continue to prepare for the possibility that a returning traveler could become ill with Ebola in Berkeley, a circumstance that happened for the first time in the U.S recently in Dallas, Texas. It is important that we be prepared. Ebola is not easy to contract. The virus is not airborne, like measles or the flu. Travel history to the West African countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea remains the leading risk factor. A person would have to come into contact with an infected person's bodily fluids while that person is exhibiting the symptoms of infection, such as high fever, vomiting, or diarrhea. Those symptoms of Ebola -- and the ensuing, contagious period -- may only appear after a period of incubation, which can be up to 21 days after exposure. The City's Public Health Division is in regular communication with Alta Bates Hospital, the University of California Health Services, and Berkeley health care providers to share information about Ebola. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) are providing detailed and updated guidance to prepare health care providers to care for an individual with Ebola virus infection. The information from the CDC and CDPH includes how to identify possible cases and recommendations to prevent the spread of Ebola. Health care workers in Berkeley, and throughout California and the United States, are routinely trained to use protections when dealing with contagious patients. Protections include gloves, waterproof gowns, face masks and eye protection. These measures are very effective in preventing the spread of infection. Hospitals have been given guidelines about isolating any individual with suspected Ebola virus to prevent the spread of the virus to health care workers, patients and the public. It is still unlikely that a case of Ebola will occur in our community. However, if a person in our city is suspected to have Ebola, the CDC, the state Department of Public Health, the City of Berkeley Public Health Division, Alameda County Public Health, local hospitals and the local medical community, with other partners, will work together to keep patients, visitors, employees and the public safe. EBOLA FACTS - There are no reports of Ebola in Berkeley or in California.
- Ebola can only be spread by a person who is sick and has symptoms of the disease. The disease is spread by contact with a sick person's body fluids.
- Ebola is not spread through the air. Exposed individuals who are not ill are not contagious.
- Berkeley continues to prepare for the unlikely chance that a person in Berkeley becomes sick with Ebola.
The Berkeley Public Health Division has shared and will continue to share information to help medical providers and hospitals in our community be informed and prepared. WHAT YOU CAN DO - Review and follow CDC travel advisories if you plan international travel (see link below)
- Consult with your primary care physician or a travel clinic before undertaking international travel, to obtain health information and recommended immunizations and preventive medications
- If you become ill after returning home, tell your health care provider where and when you traveled
MORE INFORMATION
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Susan Wengraf
Berkeley City Council District 6
510-981-7160
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