Obviously I don’t live in a flood plain.

Because of problems at Howard Hanson Dam, which controls water levels in the Green River, there’s a higher risk of flooding this winter in Auburn and the rest of the Green River Valley south of Seattle.

Most disaster-serving organizations like American Red Cross have an existing pool of trained volunteers and likely won’t need more. However, other organizations that many vulnerable people depend on for important daily services may need extra help during a disaster.

United Way of King County’s Disaster Recovery Team will be part of an extra pool of volunteers, available to these organizations during a disaster.

In a disaster, the “response” phase is the first few days and the “recovery” phase occurs after that. Volunteers would most likely be needed during the “recovery” phase, a few days after the flooding occurs.

More than 800 people have already signed up to join United Way of King County’s Disaster Recovery Team, but we need all the help we can get! Click here to learn more and sign up.

City of Seattle facilities, including parks, libraries and the Seattle Center are offering people a way to cool off and stay safe during the heat of the day. Click here for more information.

And finally, Seattle City Light offers advice for ways to stay cool while conserving electricity and what to do if your power goes out. High temperatures can add strain on electrical equipment and outages could occur.

More hot weather safety tips are available at kingcounty.gov/health/BeatTheHeat and in our previous post featuring tips from the Red Cross.