Introduction
Houses of worship (HOWs) and faith-based communities (FCs) play an integral role in local readiness and recovery efforts. The City of Los Angeles Emergency Management Department’s Prep4Faith program encourages HOWs and FCs to promote the message of emergency preparedness and readiness before disaster strikes.
Prep4Faith’s goal is to encourage faith-based organizations and houses of worship across Los Angeles to promote individual preparedness, and preparedness as a house of worship family. Prep4Faith provides congregations with resources on how to ensure their facility is safe, how members can practice preparedness in their homes, and how their house of worship can get involved in disaster relief efforts in their community. Each of these areas are discussed in more detail below.
And let’s not forget the kids! School age congregants of faith communities should be prepared too. Special resources and considerations for school age children are included below.
Join the Interfaith Coalition
The Interfaith Coalition holds quarterly meetings at EMD. Meetings are open to the public and attendance is encouraged! Meetings are held on the second Thursday of January, April, July and October at 10:00am. Come learn more about preparedness and resiliency for HOWs and FCs.
Disaster Preparedness for HOW Facilities
The primary goal of the Prep4Faith program is to work with Houses of Worship and Faith Communities to help develop emergency plans and effectively utilize these plans for any emergency that may come your way.
What would happen if a disaster were to strike during a service? What would you do? Where would you go? We hope to help you answer these questions and more in this section about preparing your facility for any emergency that may possibly occur.
Emergency Plans
An emergency plan is a crucial component of disaster preparedness. For those just getting started with thinking about planning, this “Essential Readiness for Houses of Worship” is a good place to start.
For those HOWs who are more advanced in the process the “Emergency Plan Guide” and “Emergency Plan Template” will help you create more robust disaster response plans.
This resource from the Department of Homeland Security is also valuable:
Specific Disaster Preparedness
HOWs and FCs in Los Angeles are specifically vulnerable to earthquake, fire, mudslide and active shooter.
Active Shooter
Unfortunately, due to violent events HOWs nationwide are taking the necessary measures to prepare themselves in the event of an Active Shooter. These resources provide more information on how best to prepare:
Disaster Preparedness for Individuals within the Congregation
One of the main goals of Prep4Faith is for every HOW and FC congregation to be prepared in their homes.
To help you prepare your household, the Ready Your LA Neighborhood (RYLAN) Disaster Preparedness Guide offers the tools needed to make an emergency plan for your family, create an emergency supply kit, develop a communications plan, learn about local threats and stay informed during a disaster.
HOWs as a Community Resource during Disasters
During a disaster, HOWs are often looked to as the most trusted agent in the community. In this section, are the resources needed for your house of worship to be trained in different areas of disaster relief.
Resources for School Aged Children
The first step you can take in preparing school aged children is to make sure they know these three things!
Disasters happen everywhere, and every member of the family can prepare.