• Emergency Preparedness: A Checklist

• Neighborhood Watch Needs You!

• Checklist for Starting a Neighborhood Watch Program

• Neighborhood Watch Organizer's Guide

• Citizen Involement in Homeland Security

• Good Neighbors Make Safer Communities

Some keypoints discussed included:

• CERT classes start on Sept 11 . The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Program educates people about disaster preparedness and the hazards that may impact the area they live. These FREE CERT lessons will train you in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations.

• Utilize new technologies to relay information such as texting, email, or having a web site to go to for up to date information. If phones, tv's, and computers go down, it's important to have a battery operated radio to stay abreast of what is going on.

• We need to pay attention to our elderly neighbors and be sure they are prepared in case of an emergency.

• Ideas on ways neighbors can share the preparation tasks such as one neighbor keeping ample amounts of drinking water, another neighbor storing canned foods, another neighbor having 3 or 4 filled propane tanks on hand, etc...

• Stressing to neighbors to have some emergency supplies stored now because during a real emergency, these items will be hard to come by.

• During a real emergency, the police, fire dept, and hospitals will be too busy to answer questions or give directions. This is where citizens need to help each other.

• A need to build our current neighborhood watch program. At this time, there are 455 streets in La Mesa but only 105 Neighborhood Watch captains. Communities with strong Neighborhood Watch participation have proven to be safer neighborhoods and provide residents with a higher sense of security.

• With the technologies today, it is very simple for a watch captain to relay information to everyone on their list quickly through email, texting, or on a web site.  You don't always have to hold get togethers but it is a great way to bond with your neighbors.  When you know your neighbors, you're more apt to keep your eye out for their welfare.

• This very site (http://www.lamesaneighborhoodwatch.com) is available to residents and businesses to post information which might help prevent or stop certain criminal activities.