Swinomish fair promotes emergency planning

Emergencies and natural disasters are no fun, but planning for them can be.

The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community proved as much with its second annual Emergency Preparedness Fair at John K. Bob Ball Park on Oct. 17.

The event was a festive affair with fun demonstrations (the one featuring use of fire extinguishers was especially popular), blaring rock-n-roll music, a food truck and giveaways of home emergency-related items.

Flu and Covid vaccinations were also made available to those attending.

And, to top it off, the weather was perfect. Sunshine and clear skies helped foster an upbeat mood throughout.

Swinomish Emergency Management Specialist Keri Cleary, who coordinated the fair, received kudos for enlisting a diverse array of participants as well as the picture postcard conditions.

"I don't know how Keri pulled it all together and planned it so well for mid-October in between rainstorms," said Skagit County Fire District 13 Capt. Ted Taylor, who managed the fire extinguisher demos.

Cleary shared credit with former tribal Emergency Management Coordinator Brian Gear, who now holds a similar position with Skagit County.

"Brian and I worked together the past couple of years on this," said Cleary, who for two decades has worked with tribal governments in various departments.

"The thing about emergency management," she said, "is that it touches on everything."

Taking part in the 2024 fair were representatives of the American Red Cross, West Skagit Community Emergency Response Team, Fire District 13, Skagit County Search & Rescue, Skagit Public Utility District, Swinomish Police, Skagit Humane Society, Swinomish Environmental Protection, Bonneville Power Administration, Swinomish Utility Authority and the Washington State Emergency Management Division, among others.

Hollie Stark, the state emergency management division's outreach program manager, shared handouts outlining tips for dealing with earthquakes, tsunamis and other disaster situations. She gave out decks of disaster preparedness playing cards bearing images of Bigfoot that were a hit.

Next to Stark's table sat David Tracy and Brandon Williams of the Swinomish Utility Authority. They showed fair attendees how to turn off natural gas meters during an emergency and gave out wrenches for the purpose.

Throughout the fair was information on all manner of emergency and disaster topics, including effective flood response measures and a complete disaster preparedness guide.

Fair attendance was multi-generational. Children, parents and grandparents took turns using fire extinguishers at Taylor's demonstration site. Shortly after teens Gavin Day and Dashawn Siddle finished their turns, Swinomish Tribal Senate chair Steve Edwards stepped forward to extinguish flames lit and controlled by District 13 firefighters.

The Swinomish fair coincided with statewide Great ShakeOut activities on Thursday. Local tsunami sirens were sounded at 10:17 a.m. and Fire District 13 personnel conducted a drill involving immediate mobilization of vehicles and equipment from the Snee-Oosh Road station.

The Great ShakeOut is a global earthquake drill and preparedness event. It originated on the U.S. West Coast in response to the Oct. 17, 1989, magnitude 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area that resulted in 63 deaths, thousands injured and displaced, and widespread damage to buildings and infrastructure.

Dovetailing this year's Swinomish Emergency Preparedness Fair is ongoing work led by Taylor, who is the District 13 emergency management coordinator, to develop a disaster evacuation plan for Swinomish Village and Shelter Bay.