NY National Guard Offering Disaster Prep Classes at Rushmore Avenue School on Dec. 12

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New York Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Joseph Hernon leads a Citizen Preparedness Corps Training Program session in Watertown, N.Y., on June 26, 2014.

CARLE PLACE, NY (12/09/2014)(readMedia)-- From helping citizens dig out of winter storms to prepping them for such emergencies, New York National Guard troops are part of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo's state readiness goals, including his Citizen Preparedness Corps Training Program.

Soldiers and Airmen will be holding a session of the program at Rushmore Avenue School here at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 12. The program equips citizens with knowledge and tools to prepare for emergencies and disasters, respond accordingly, and recover as quickly as possible to pre-disaster conditions.

The program, designed by the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services (DHSES), covers a broad range of preparedness topics, like developing a family emergency plan, registering for NY-Alert, the free statewide emergency alert system, and maintaining a 7 to 10-day supply of food and water. New York National Guard troops recently responded to a Buffalo-area snow storm that left some residents snowbound at home for several days -- a disaster effect that highlights the importance of citizen readiness.

Cuomo launched the program in early February. Since then, troops of the program, along with DHSES personnel and local emergency officials, have held over 200 events statewide, and taught over 28,000 citizens how to be better prepared for emergencies and disasters like the Buffalo-area storm.

These events included a 10-location push on Sept. 27, at venues like Stony Brook University in neighboring Suffolk County, and in North Country, southern tier, Finger Lakes, and Western New York areas. While Soldiers and Airmen were helping Buffalo-area residents during the recent snow emergency, troops of the program trained about 1,625 New York City-area residents how to be better prepared for emergencies and disasters.

New Yorkers have always stepped up to help each other, and the program empowers them to be first responders for their loved ones and neighbors, Cuomo stressed when he launched the program. He reiterated these sentiments while touring snowstorm-affected areas in Western New York recently, saying that "Buffalo is also known as the city of good neighbors."

"But Buffalo is known for tenacity and Buffalo is known for dealing with adversity and overcoming, and this will be one of those situations," Cuomo said. "This is an opportunity to be a good neighbor. Check on people on your block; check on senior citizens on your block to make sure they have everything. You'll have people who have been homebound for three, four, or five days, and people may need assistance. So if you could take that responsibility yourself as a neighbor, check on your surrounding neighbors, stay home, let the first responders do their work, let us get the roads cleared."

Across the state, New Yorkers have responded to the Citizen Preparedness Corps Training Program with enthusiasm, applause and questions, along with their own preparedness advice and experiences.

"New Yorkers are acutely aware of the damage that frequent and severe storms inflict on communities across the state," Cuomo said in a press release ahead of the Sept. 27 events. The Citizen Preparedness Corps has equipped thousands of New Yorkers to respond better to emergencies and disasters, he emphasized.

Rushmore Avenue School is located at 251 Rushmore Ave, Carle Place, N.Y. Citizens should register for the event at www.dhses.ny.gov/aware-prepare/nysprepare/registration.

Participants will receive a training certificate, a wallet-sized pamphlet of emergency preparedness information, and a free Citizen Preparedness Starter Kit (one per family). The kit includes a first-aid kit, face mask, pocket radio with batteries, food bars, emergency blanket and other key items to help citizens in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. The classes include information about what other supplies and items citizens should add to their kits.

For more information about the event, call the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs at 518-786-6186, or Master Sgt. Ray Drumsta at 518-786-6151.

For more information on the program and emergency preparedness, visit www.nyprepare.gov.