#nyc sandy

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Aerial view of the Sandy Blackout

Level Agent: Jamie Grant

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Helping Children Cope With Disaster

Disasters can leave children feeling frightened, confused, and insecure. Whether a child has personally experienced trauma, has merely seen the event on television or has heard it discussed by adults, it is important for parents and teachers to be informed and ready to help if reactions to stress begin to occur.

Children may respond to disaster by demonstrating fears, sadness or behavioral problems. Younger children may return to earlier behavior patterns, such as bedwetting, sleep problems and separation anxiety. Older children may also display anger, aggression, school problems or withdrawal. Some children who have only indirect contact with the disaster but witness it on television may develop distress.

RECOGNIZE RISK FACTORS

For many children, reactions to disasters are brief and represent normal reactions to "abnormal events." A smaller number of children can be at risk for more enduring psychological distress as a function of three major risk factors:

Direct exposure to the disaster, such as being evacuated, observing injuries or death of others, or experiencing injury along with fearing one’s life is in danger.

Loss/grief: This relates to the death or serious injury of family or friends.

On-going stress from the secondary effects of disaster, such as temporarily living elsewhere, loss of friends and social networks, loss of personal property, parental unemployment, and costs incurred during recovery to return the family to pre-disaster life and living conditions.

VULNERABILITIES IN CHILDREN

In most cases, depending on the risk factors above, distressing responses are temporary. In the absence of severe threat to life, injury, loss of loved ones, or secondary problems such as loss of home, moves, etc., symptoms usually diminish over time. For those that were directly exposed to the disaster, reminders of the disaster such as high winds, smoke, cloudy skies, sirens, or other reminders of the disaster may cause upsetting feelings to return. Having a prior history of some type of traumatic event or severe stress may contribute to these feelings.

Children’s coping with disaster or emergencies is often tied to the way parents cope. They can detect adults’ fears and sadness. Parents and adults can make disasters less traumatic for children by taking steps to manage their own feelings and plans for coping. Parents are almost always the best source of support for children in disasters. One way to establish a sense of control and to build confidence in children before a disaster is to engage and involve them in preparing a family disaster plan. After a disaster, children can contribute to a family recovery plan.

MEETING THE CHILD’S EMOTIONAL NEEDS

Children’s reactions are influenced by the behavior, thoughts, and feelings of adults. Adults should encourage children and adolescents to share their thoughts and feelings about the incident. Clarify misunderstandings about risk and danger by listening to children’s concerns and answering questions. Maintain a sense of calm by validating children’s concerns and perceptions and with discussion of concrete plans for safety.

Listen to what the child is saying. If a young child is asking questions about the event, answer them simply without the elaboration needed for an older child or adult. Some children are comforted by knowing more or less information than others; decide what level of information your particular child needs. If a child has difficulty expressing feelings, allow the child to draw a picture or tell a story of what happened.

Try to understand what is causing anxieties and fears. Be aware that following a disaster, children are most afraid that:

The event will happen again.

Someone close to them will be killed or injured.

They will be left alone or separated from the family.

REASSURING CHILDREN AFTER A DISASTER

Suggestions to help reassure children include the following:

Personal contact is reassuring. Hug and touch your children.

Calmly provide factual information about the recent disaster and current plans for insuring their safety along with recovery plans.

Encourage your children to talk about their feelings.

Spend extra time with your children such as at bedtime.

Re-establish your daily routine for work, school, play, meals, and rest.

Involve your children by giving them specific chores to help them feel they are helping to restore family and community life.

Praise and recognize responsible behavior.

Understand that your children will have a range of reactions to disasters.

Encourage your children to help update your a family disaster plan.

If you have tried to create a reassuring environment by following the steps above, but your child continues to exhibit stress, if the reactions worsen over time, or if they cause interference with daily behavior at school, at home, or with other relationships, it may be appropriate to talk to a professional. You can get professional help from the child’s primary care physician, a mental health provider specializing in children’s needs, or a member of the clergy.

MONITOR AND LIMIT EXPOSURE TO THE MEDIA

News coverage related to a disaster may elicit fear and confusion and arouse anxiety in children. This is particularly true for large-scale disasters or a terrorist event where significant property damage and loss of life has occurred. Particularly for younger children, repeated images of an event may cause them to believe the event is recurring over and over.

If parents allow children to watch television or use the Internet where images or news about the disaster are shown, parents should be with them to encourage communication and provide explanations. This may also include parent’s monitoring and appropriately limiting their own exposure to anxiety-provoking information.

USE SUPPORT NETWORKS

Parents help their children when they take steps to understand and manage their own feelings and ways of coping. They can do this by building and using social support systems of family, friends, community organizations and agencies, faith-based institutions, or other resources that work for that family. Parents can build their own unique social support systems so that in an emergency situation or when a disaster strikes, they can be supported and helped to manage their reactions. As a result, parents will be more available to their children and better able to support them. Parents are almost always the best source of support for children in difficult times. But to support their children, parents need to attend to their own needs and have a plan for their own support.

Preparing for disaster helps everyone in the family accept the fact that disasters do happen, and provides an opportunity to identify and collect the resources needed to meet basic needs after disaster. Preparation helps; when people feel prepared, they cope better and so do children..

[nyc-sandy-volunteers]

Where to find gas in NYC

As of now there is very limited service on the city's Subway and Commuter Rail systems and having a car isn't all that helpful when you can't get gas. If you're hard pressed to find a gas station that is open and has gas for sale check out Mappler. 

Mappler is a community sourced mapping application that takes user data to provide from-the-field data visually represented on a map. What this means for you is you're able to get as close to real-time info on where to find gas. 

With great power comes great responsibility and all that. 

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We would rather see those generators working in the Rockaways or Staten Island. 

UPDATE: The Mayor's Office has officially canceled the NYC Marathon.

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Volunteer Opportunity - Red Hook

Recovers.org is posting volunteer opportunities in the NYC-Metro area helping communities rebuild. Here's the blurb from the Red Hook volunteer project with details on how you can pitch in.

Donations and Volunteers Needed !!!!!

posted 44 minutes ago by mariyanyc |1 comment

Hello, everyone, and thank you for your great work! If you still want to help, any donations you can bring would be greatly appreciated. There are some specific things needed : -already prepared food (including food for children) -blankets -baby products (diapers, wipes, etc.) -batteries, flashlights, candles, power strips -toiletries (including toilet paper and paper towels) -utensils such as spoons and bowls -jugs of water-ensure bottles-vitamins-generators The best place to volunteer and/or send donations: St. Jacobi Church 5406 4th Ave. between 54th and 55th St., Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

If you are in the Red Hook area and cannot get down to Sunset Park, donations can be brought down to Miccio Community Center at 110 West 9th Street and meals will still be served at 676 Hicks Street (intersection of Hicks and west 9th street)

Financial Donations can be made to: https://www.wepay.com/donations/occupy-sandy-cleanup-volunteers

For more information (and other locations) call [phone] or email [email protected]

Thanks for the tip @joeljohnson!

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If you're in need of food or water here's where you can find a distribution site. Sites will be open from 1pm-5pm; weekend hours to be announced. 

[nyc-sandy-volunteers]

ConEdison dry ice distribution

Though not quite the news we're waiting for, but Con Edison is providing some relief for those without power. Today at noon, ConEd will be out distributing dry ice in all five boroughs and Westchester County. Check out the list of locations below.

Manhattan

Union Square Park (South side of park) Union Square West and 14th Street

Westchester

IBM Complex parking lot - 200 Business Park Drive

Yonkers Raceway - 810 Yonkers Avenue

Staten Island

Great Kills Park - entrance on Buffalo Street

Queens

Francis Lewis Playground PS130 - Francis Lewis Blvd. at 42nd Avenue

Bronx

1846 Radcliff Avenue between Morris Park Avenue & Rhinelander Avenue

Brooklyn

Walgreen's at 532 Neptune Avenue between West 5th Street & West 6th Street

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A little comfort food can go a long way.