VashonBePrepared: Help visitors be ready for emergencies

Tourism season is heating up on Vashon.

By News from VashonBePrepared • April 17, 2025 9:30 am
Have a preparedness question? Start with the “Prepare” menu on the new VashonBePrepared.org home page. Clicking or hovering will pull down a comprehensive list of articles and checklists. Go deeper into a topic by clicking on the magnifying glass to search. For example, type in the word “smoke” and you’ll get a clickable list of pages on wildfire smoke. Note: Your desktop computer screen, tablet, or phone may not look exactly like this image. Depending on your browser and device, the Prepare menu and search function might be available at the top or bottom of the home page. (Webpage screenshot)
Have a preparedness question? Start with the “Prepare” menu on the new VashonBePrepared.org home page. Clicking or hovering will pull down a comprehensive list of articles and checklists. Go deeper into a topic by clicking on the magnifying glass to search. For example, type in the word “smoke” and you’ll get a clickable list of pages on wildfire smoke. Note: Your desktop computer screen, tablet, or phone may not look exactly like this image. Depending on your browser and device, the Prepare menu and search function might be available at the top or bottom of the home page. (Webpage screenshot)

It’s the season for tourists: Thousands of visitors come to Vashon for a week or two during spring and summer. Your guests might be relatives or friends, or, perhaps, you run a vacation rental property.

We all know the standard recommendations for visitors hoping to experience the joys of Vashon: Visit the troll. Check out the lighthouse. Walk in the woods or along the beach.

But you also know that our idyllic island can get shaken by an earthquake and that lights can go dark in a windstorm. Here are some things you can do to help your visitors stay safer and more comfortable during a challenging event.

• Keep in mind that you may not be available to help them. You might be out at the grocery or work, for example. So provide an easy-to-find, just-in-case kit of essentials and information right in the visitor space. Include a comprehensive visitor guide — search for ‘vacation rental guide’ to find templates.

• Include your personal contact number and email and how to get medical care. Download and complete the emergency contact card at the VashonBePrepared website: tinyurl.com/28t3nnoh.

• Put a flashlight and extra batteries, a first aid kit, bottled water, and local maps in your visitor just-in-case kit. Stow some extra canned foods in the pantry. Mount a fire extinguisher in a visible place on the wall. For ideas, take a look at the go kit lists on our website at vashonbeprepared.org/prepare-household. Think about the kinds of things a visitor might need. After all, they probably did not bring a personal go bag with them on the plane!

• Information will be key during an emergency, so the cheat sheet should include directions for accessing the Voice of Vashon Emergency Alert System radio frequency — 1650AM, streaming links, and the website: voiceofvashon.org/alerts-and-news.

• Your visitors may not be familiar with the basic aspects of how your home works. Make sure your visitors’ guide shows the location of utility shutoffs and the circuit breaker panel.

• Provide evacuation information for getting out of the building safely and where to meet up. If located in a shoreline area, include tsunami escape directions: vashonbeprepared.org/hazard/tsunamis.

Fast Access Preparedness Info

The new VashonBePrepared website at VashonBePrepared.org provides tons of information. In fact, there’s so much info that you might have to browse through a lot of material to find the answer to your specific preparedness question. Here are two quick techniques that will help you quickly get the information you need:

• You can click on the Prepare menu on our redesigned home page and go directly to a list of preparedness categories and hazards.

• The new website also includes a powerful search tool that will find your topic anywhere among the many pages of information.

Healthy Island, Healthy You

We’ve compiled information for three events designed to keep our community healthy and resilient.

Health Fair: The whole community is invited to Vashon’s annual health fair, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 3 at the Methodist Church, at 17928 Vashon Highway.

Organized by the Vashon Health Care District (vashonhealthcare.org), visitors can get free health screenings, including a blood pressure check and glucose test, and free vaccinations. The fair will offer signups for counseling in mental health, reproductive health, and addiction prevention and treatment. Resource navigators fluent in English and Spanish will be on hand to help visitors sign up to get medical insurance, discounted ORCA transit cards, and Medicaid vouchers.

Community Blood Drive: Vashonites have a rare opportunity to make a blood donation right here on Vashon at a community blood drive from 10:15 a.m-4:15 p.m. Wednesday, May 14 at the Lutheran Church, at 18623 Vashon Highway SW. However, appointments are limited, and pre-registration is required. Go to donate.bloodworksnw.org to sign up for an appointment.

Sea to Soil Resilience Workshops: Washington’s Coastal Hazards Organizational Resilience Team (COHORT), Vashon Nature Center, and Washington State University’s King County Extension have created a series of workshops on building climate resilience at home, working towards a more self-sufficient, sustainable version of our island community.

Cosponsored by VashonBePrepared, the workshop series is titled “From Sea to Soil: Building Resilience for a Healthy Island.” Topics include:

• Stewarding your land for salmon and climate resilience.

• Gardening in a changing climate.

• The relationship between food sovereignty, food preservation, and emergency preparedness.

The first of three Sea to Soil workshops takes place from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. May 2, at the Land Trust building, 10014 SW Bank Road. The organizers recommend pre-registering at tinyurl.com/SeaToSoil.