Determining Potential Emergencies
One of the first steps in preparing for an emergency is to find out what types of disasters are prevalent in your area. This includes both natural and man-made disasters. By knowing what emergencies may come your way, determines where you will keep your emergency kit.
For example, if tornadoes are a possibility in your area, a basement would be a likely place to keep your emergency kit. However, if flooding is a threat, a basement would not be an ideal location.
If you are new to an area, do some research to discover potential emergencies. You will need to know if you should stay in your home or evacuate. You will need to know where emergency shelters in your locale are located, if that is an option you should take.
We have tornadoes as a threat in our area, for example. We have designated a closet that is located under a staircase, which is away from windows. It is partially below ground and has a significant amount of piping that serves as additional support. In previous houses, however, our best protection was in a ground floor bathroom or closet.
Also, pay attention to how you will be notified of emergencies. We have a tornado siren in our area that sounds when a tornado watch turns into a tornado warning, which means to take cover. Other possible methods of alert are through emergency radio, TV broadcasts, computer weather alerts, or phone calls from local authorities.
I keep The Weather Channel on my desktop which has a temperature icon in the lower right corner of my computer screen. When there is a weather alert, it turns red.
We’ll talk about emergency radios tomorrow.
We had some great suggestions yesterday - take a look. What do you do to prepare for emergencies?
Resource: National Preparedness Month
Related Posts: National Preparedness Month - Making a Plan
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