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Disaster Tips

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Be Prepared

The new preparedness model is now 2 weeks supply, not just 72-hours.

  • Make an emergency preparedness checklist.

  • Schedule occasional family conferences to discuss procedures to follow in different kinds of emergencies.

  • Hold practice drills.

  • Post and memorize emergency telephone numbers (including poison control).

  • Assemble and store a survival kit containing:

    • Flashlights and portable radio with extra batteries

    • First aid kit with manual

    • Crescent and pipe wrenches for turning off utilities

    • Chlorine bleach for water purification

    • Fire extinguisher

    • Emergency food and beverage supply (nonperishable food, juices, and one gallon of water per person per day)

    • Spare eyeglasses, prescribed medications, baby food, pet food, and special dietary foods

    • Manual can opener

    • Sanitation supplies -- large plastic trash bags, soap (hand, dish, and shampoo), toothbrush and paste, feminine supplies, infant care items, toilet paper, newspaper, and a camp shovel

    • Blankets

    • Cooking equipment

    • Complete change of clothes for each person in the family
 

  • Learn first aid.

  • Establish a location for the family to reunite if members become separated.

  • Arrange for a friend or relative in another town to be a communication contact for the extended family.

  • Learn the emergency plans of the family's schools, day-care centers, workplaces, and clubs.

  • Make a habit of tuning in to daily weather forecasts and be aware of changing conditions. The Emergency Broadcast System on commercial radio and TV stations will announce a WATCH if an emergency situation is expected and a WARNING if it is imminent or in progress.

  • Learn Emergency food and water procedures.
 

    • Be prepared to take care of yourself and your family for up to five days.

    • Take emergency drinking water from melting ice cubes, water heater, and canned fruits and vegetables.

    • Don't drink municipal tap water, or water from any questionable sources, until it has been strained with a clean cloth and treated. To treat water add ten drops of chlorine bleach to each gallon of water, mix well, and let stand for about 30 minutes.

    • Freezer foods will last from 48 to 72 hours if the freezer is full and the door stays closed.

    • Discard all open food and beverages that may have been contaminated.

    • Eat perishable foods first.

    • Cook on portable grills, but only outdoors.

 

 

  • Determine an evacuation route and alternates.

  • Find out where main utility switches are and learn how to turn them off if they rupture and trained technicians are not available.