Supervisors have declared September as Disaster Preparedness Month even though it’s still August. At this week’s proclamation, Kern County Fire Chief Brian Marshall said they’ll make sure everyone gets the message to be ready through a series of Public Service Announcements. “We’re gonna bombard ’em to make sure they’re ready, because it’s not a matter of if but a matter of when.” Marshall says he’s especially interested in getting the word out about the Ready Kern alert system that notifies residents of an emergency in their area.

Suzanne Grant