The Pacific Northwest is a heavily forested and wooded region where even British Columbia must be acknowledged too. Although Without Warning! Wildfire was authored to address worries in Oregon, the information presented is just as valid Canada-side too. Disaster can happen anytime and this province is still recovering from the devestating floods which destroyed infrastructures.
The first two comics in the series, Without Warning! Earthquake (published in 2014) and Without Warning! Tsunami (published in 2016), have been distributed throughout the Northwest and adapted for other regions, helping support readiness in communities.
From the press release:
Emergencies and disasters can happen at any time, often without warning. Empowering every Oregonian – including youth – to reduce their risk, be ready, and know what to do when disaster strikes is critical to staying safe. Kids and teens who are prepared often experience less anxiety and feel more confident during actual emergencies and disasters.
The Oregon Office of Emergency Management and Dark Horse Comics have released a new comic book titled, Without Warning! Wildfire. Addressing what to do before and during a Northwest wildfire, the comic is third in a series of educational and entertaining comic books promoting emergency preparedness.
“The Without Warning! comic book series began because we found that many public education publications struggled to resonate with younger audiences,” said Althea Rizzo, OEM Geologic Hazards Program Coordinator. “The series has been a huge hit, helping us engage with youth while introducing and reinforcing the concept of readiness.”
“Smokey Bear offers a variety of educational options for young children, but it’s been challenging to find engaging and creative resources to talk with teens and young adults about wildfire prevention,” said Kristin Babbs, President and CEO of the Keep Oregon Green Association. “This comic book fills that important gap.”
Without Warning! Wildfire features characters hiking and camping in a Northwest wilderness area who are forced to flee for their lives to escape a quickly moving wildfire. The comic helps teach readers how to protect themselves, their loved ones and wildlands when wildfires occur.
The comic book series originated with OEM’s GeoHazards program, which works with partners to create tools and programs to make Oregon more resilient to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes. This latest issue was produced in collaboration with OEM, Dark Horse Comics, Clackamas Community College, Oregon Dept. of Forestry and Keep Oregon Green.
Without Warning! Wildfire is available to read for free at Dark Horse Digital, OEM’s website, and on iOS and Android apps. It is also available on Kindle, Comixology, Google Play and Apple Books.
