Successful management of a disaster begins at the local level. When a community is prepared to deal with a disaster, the impact can be minimized and lives may be saved. One key to community preparedness is a community emergency plan that defines how the community will manage disasters. The plan should include local, regional, and state resources that support local response.

An example of a customized SCERP flip book. 

The Small Community Emergency Response Plan (SCERP) is an approach to emergency management for small communities provided by the state of Alaska. SCERP is a customized flip book with essential, community-specific information for responding to a disaster. The SCERP is designed for communities with a population of 2,000 or less. 

SCERP Steps include:

1. Establish a community planning team (guidance is provided on the SCERP website).
2. Download the SCERP Toolkit.
3. Complete the SCERP Toolkit with your planning team.
4. Email or mail the SCERP Toolkit to the Alaska SCERP Team.
5. The SCERP team will develop your customized SCERP plan and send it to you.
6. Use your SCERP to run community disaster response exercises (assistance can be provided by the Alaska SCERP team).
7. Update your SCERP annually with the local planning and Alaska SCERP teams.