HALE'IWA — When an emergency or disaster strikes, state and county officials kick into action with a plan that has been developed and rehearsed in Honolulu, but the North Shore community is not certain that plan will work for them.

So with a $100,000 grant from the state, community leaders hope to create a unique emergency plan for the North Shore, the area from Ka'ena Point to Waiale'e and maybe beyond to Turtle Bay.

Large fires in 2003 and again this year that came within feet of torching homes and businesses underscored the need for a community plan to evacuate residents, tourists and shop owners during an emergency.

The North Shore also has miles of coastline, making it vulnerable to hurricanes and tsunamis, and since Sunset Beach School tried to get off the designated shelter list, only Waialua High and Intermediate School is available for 18,000 people who live on the 27-mile-long stretch, said Antya Miller, executive director for the North Shore Chamber of Commerce.

"We're the most likely to get hit," said Miller when trying to explain why the community needed a plan. When the 2003 fire came within feet of the North Shore Market Place, the town was told it was up to individual businesses to have an evacuation plan, she said.

"After Katrina, it's pretty obvious people need to take the responsibility on themselves, because government can't do everything," Miller said.

But government is willing to help with money to create a plan, classes to teach volunteers and offer advice, said Leon Watson, who is coordinating the plan for the North Shore.

"Last year Gov. (Linda) Lingle put out a challenge that said prepare yourself," Watson said. "So we did."

At first, they had asked for $177,000 to cover everything, including rockfalls and fires. But with the lesser amount, they will focus on tsunamis, floods and hurricanes.

The plan will include ways to prepare and how to get involved with agencies. Volunteers will be sought and trained to deal with such things as helping the elderly and disabled, and manning shelters, he said.

The North Shore will work closely with the state Civil Defense and the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management (formerly called O'ahu Civil Defense).

Ken Gilbert, acting planning and operation officer for the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management, said more people are beginning to realize the importance of being prepared. Once other communities see the North Shore moving ahead, he said, they will want to do it, too.

"It goes back to that old adage that knowledge is power," Gilbert said. "For me personally, it's more comforting to know what to do if something happens, versus 'what am I supposed to do?'."

Jeff Spencer, CERT/Volunteer Services coordinator, will train the volunteers. CERT, or Community Emergency Response Teams, were created after the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, said Spencer, with the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management. The Los Angeles Fire Department went to Mexico to help and saw untrained spontaneous volunteers trying to rescue people, he said.

"These untrained volunteers were credited with saving 800 lives, but because they weren't trained properly, over 100 of these volunteers died," Spencer said. When the firefighters came home, they vowed to train as many people as they could and formed the first CERT teams, he said.

Spencer said he has 400 CERT volunteers and about 300 Civil Defense volunteers, most of who are CERT certified. More people are needed, he said.

"The problem is no one wants it until the disaster happens," Spencer said, adding that by then, it's too late to make a difference. "I want people to be proactive and take training prior to something happening."

Ray Lovell, with state Civil Defense, said the state will help with the actual plan and the city provides training.

"We don't do the job for them," Lovell said. "We don't come in and say here's your plan. They have to write it."

While it's common for community groups and organizations to volunteer, this is the first time, to Lovell's knowledge, that a whole geographical area has stepped forward to create a plan and provide volunteers.

"We're ecstatic that an entire community that large wants to do this," he said.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.