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Emergency Preparedness: Are You Ready?

On May 15, an Emergency Preparedness meeting was organized by Doug Colliflower, one of our Villagers.  Approximately 20 Villagers attended to hear the valuable information and have lunch afterward. 

Deb Halberstadt of the Senior Red Cross gave a PowerPoint presentation to share strategies to prepare yourself and your home --- before, during, and after a disaster. An important reminder is that in a major disaster you and your neighbors will be the actual first responders, as the traditional first responders will be doing broad assessments and dealing with systemic issues. So, an advance, important preparation is to get to know your neighbors. The Red Cross actually offers a program called Map Your Neighborhood, to help neighbors share information like knowing where the shut-offs are for water, electricity and gas.

Emergency kits can serve various needs. A personal kit usually contains a 3-day supply for one person. A family kit aims to supply a family for 2 weeks. A bed kit is focused on the immediate minutes after an earthquake — extra eyeglasses, flashlight and batteries, gloves, shoes, whistle, and perhaps a small crowbar. A pair of shoes should always be kept by the bed since half of all earthquake injuries come from broken glass. A good suggestion is to assemble a bed kit in a pillowcase and tie it to the bedpost or bedframe so it is always available. 

Emergency supplies should be assembled and stored ahead of time — water, food, medicines, toilet paper, toys and games to keep folks occupied, pet supplies, first aid kit, flashlight and batteries, manual can opener, toiletries, work gloves, cell phone, car charger (in the car), solar and/or crank chargers for radios/phones, cash, whistle, warm clothes and shoes, important documents. 

In addition to knowing your neighbors, make sure that you know how to turn off your water, gas and electricity. Knowing the neighborhood and various routes that could be used in case of emergency or road blockage is also important preparation. 

All members who participated in the meeting received a brightly marked plastic envelope in which to store important documents (or copies of these documents):  Drivers licenses and/or ID cards; emergency contact list; passports; birth certificates; Social Security cards; medical insurance cards; immunization records; prescription lists; cash in small bills; bank account numbers; credit card and company numbers.

Tips were shared during the presentation and discussion:

- Good to keep whistles around the house to be used in case of emergency. (If you’re trapped or injured a whistle works much better than your voice.)

- Take photos of your household items and rooms — in case you need to document losses or identify items later.

- Be sure to have a physical list of important phone numbers and contact information – cell phones may not be working.

- Paper maps may be needed if you need to leave an area and GPS is not available.  (AAA still has maps available.)

- Write down important communication resources:

- KNX 1070 am – an emergency radio broadcast station (including Red Cross shelter information)

- KFI 640 am – an emergency radio broadcast station

- Sign up for Reverse 911 to receive emergency notifications on your cellphone

- Download the Red Cross Emergency App on your cell phone. It has lots of great emergency and first aid information