In the event of a major emergency, such as an earthquake, we are likely to be on our own for a few days. The City of Palo Alto and the Barron Park Association have established an excellent program for citizen participation as Emergency Service Volunteers (ESV). Barron Square participates in this program and our clubhouse is the communications hub for the Barron Park neighborhood.
The program is based on “Block Preparedness Coordinators”, or in our case, “Building Captains”, who volunteer to acquaint themselves with the neighbors in their building, provide them with information and help them prepare themselves and their families for a future emergency. In the event of a disaster, these volunteers are the eyes and ears of the system, checking on their neighbors and reporting problems to the Neighborhood Coordinators.
You can volunteer as much or as little time as you are able. There are quarterly informational meetings and free classes by the City of Palo Alto on emergency preparedness including radio communications, identifying damage and hazards, locating and turning off utilities, etc.
We currently need Building Captains for buildings 2,4,5,10 and 11. The unit sign outside your building has your building number on it and it is a good thing to know if you should ever need to call 9-1-1 and give them directions for an emergency. Additional volunteers for radio communications and backup.
If you want more information, please contact Joel Davidson at (650) 856-7627 (email: bsajoel@barronsquare.org) or Maurice Green at (650) 493-5914 (email: president@barronsquare.org). No obligation required for asking!