JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii. – Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) has been recognized by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/National Weather Service (NWS) as StormReady® and TsunamiReady®, Dec. 14.

According to the NWS, JBPHH is the first installation in the Pacific and the State of Hawaii to be distinguished with both titles, representing a small, elite group of emergency management and response teams that have proven to meet the NOAA’s high standards of becoming StormReady and TsunamiReady organizations. JBPHH is considered highly prepared to respond to and recover from a multitude of natural disasters and hazards, such as typhoons, other severe weather types, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions, that can impact its population.

To be officially StormReady a community must:

– Establish a 24-hour warning point and emergency operations center

– Have more than one way to receive severe weather warnings and forecasts and to alert the public

– Create a system that monitors weather conditions locally

– Promote the importance of public readiness through community seminars

– Develop a formal hazardous weather plan, which includes training severe weather and holding emergency exercises.

When it comes to preparedness in paradise, “It is important to be prepared here because we are an island community, and we are so far away from our re-supply on the mainland. For example: 95% of our goods come through by ship. If a hurricane or tsunami destroyed the harbor, we would potentially have to wait weeks or maybe even longer to resupply. So it’s important for us as a community to be prepared before the storm hits,” said Warren Ferguson, Emergency Management Officer for JBPHH.

This recognition represents the installations’ hard work and joint efforts to not only meet existing directives, but also showcases JBPHH’s dedication to support and care for everyone on base by taking it a step further to obtain these certifications. Navy-wide there are currently 17 installations designated as StormReady, with 7 of those installations holding both StormReady and TsunamiReady titles.

These programs use a grassroots approach to help communities handle all types of severe weather and/or tsunami hazards by asking communities to proactively improve their weather and tsunami-related emergency operations. Local NWS meteorologists work one-on-one with emergency managers to provide clear-cut guidelines on how to strengthen these operations. To become certified, communities must meet guidelines established by the National Weather Service in partnership with federal, state, and local emergency management professionals.

For installations interested in becoming a StormReady / TsunamiReady community, they can get in touch with either their Emergency Management Department or local NOAA office.