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Disaster Preparedness

Being prepared for an emergency or natural disaster is key to staying safe when the unexpected happens. Flooding, extreme heat events, wildfire smoke, and electric outages are going to become more frequent due to climate change. We work to support the public to be prepared.

Information and Alerts

The County's Office of Emergency Services is committed to preparing Alameda County to respond efficiently and effectively to emergencies. Our County Emergency Site is a centralized website with real time updates from first responders and resources for households on emergency planning. The public is also highly encouraged to subscribe to AC Alert to receive text and email sharing critical information quickly during unexpected events.

Preparedness Training Slide Decks

The County's 40-minute Climate Disasters Preparedness Training (in Spanish, Capacitación sobre Preparación ante Catástrofes Climáticas) helps prepare community organizations and residents for climate disasters that affect the County including extreme heat, wildfires, poor air quality, power outages, and storms and flooding. The training content was developed with information from the City of San Leandro Office of Sustainability and the Alameda County Office of Sustainability, Health Emergency Preparedness and Response, Health Care Services Agency, Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services, Public Works Department, and Social Services Agency, and advised by community-based organizations.

The training slide deck and script are available in English and Spanish.
The training videos are shared via playlists on YouTube in English and Spanish.

  • Slides include speaking notes and links for more information and can be pulled apart into 7-minute sections on each topic.
  • Videos include audio with closed captioning. Shorter videos (6-7 minutes) share tips for single threats. Longer videos (20-40 minutes) combine several single-threat videos together and are great for seasonal preparedness or group trainings.

A 35-minute version of the training, Wildfire & Heat Season Preparedness Training or Capacitación sobre incendios forestales y temporada de calor, focuses only on the impacts anticipated in the summer and fall, such as wildfires, heat, power shutoffs, and poor air quality. The slide deck and script are available in English and Spanish. See YouTube playlists above to find videos.

A 25-minute version of the training, Winter Storm Season Training or Capacitación sobre la temporada de tormentas invernales, focuses only on the impacts anticipated in the winter, such as storms, flooding and power shutoff. The slide deck and script are available in English and Spanish. See YouTube playlists above to find videos.

If you use these training materials, please email us to let us know how you shared the information for documentation purposes.

Community-Based Recommendations for Climate and Disaster Communications

The Alameda County General Services Agency (GSA) Office of Sustainability led a Climate & Health Communication Project with the support of a small grant from the Urban Sustainability Directors Network's Emergent Learning Fund. Under the project, seven community-based organizations provided feedback and recommendations for climate, health, and disaster preparedness communication materials. A short report summarizes the findings of the project.

Small Business Disaster Preparedness

Forty percent of business that closed due to a natural disaster never re-open. Having an emergency preparedness plan can help businesses resume operations after an interruption. To help increase the resilience - and sustainability - of your business, you may want to consider a number of free and low-cost resources available in the County; see a list of resources on this flyer.

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