You
never know when an emergency will happen, which is why you should
always be ready for one if the situation does arise. To make sure you’re
prepared for whatever may come, take the time to create an emergency
kit for your home and make sure every member of your family and your
nanny know where it is and what’s inside. Also make sure everyone knows
and understands the emergency procedures for a disaster. This kind of
preparation can save you seconds or minutes in a life-threatening
situation.
Learn about your local emergency warning systems. Your
local emergency management office, civil defense office, or Red Cross
chapter can give you detailed information about your area’s early
warning systems. Know where to get up-to-date information about natural
disasters like tornados, hurricanes, and flooding. To make sure you
don’t miss a critical announcement, purchase a self-powered weather
alert radio that can be set to your location and warn you of a weather
emergency.
Stock up on supplies for a power outage. Short power
outages are inconvenient, but long outages can be a danger to your
family’s health and safety. Make sure you have self-powered flashlights
and lanterns, an emergency radio, and plenty of batteries for book
lights, portable DVD players, and handheld games. Stock up on
non-perishable food like canned meats, tuna, soups, fruits, and
vegetables, plus boxed food like crackers, goldfish, and other
kid-friendly snacks. Make sure you have a hand-held can opener on hand
too. Have plenty of water available for each person in your family. If
you have a wood-burning fireplace or stove, stock enough wood to keep a
fire going for a few days. In winter, this may be your only way to keep
the chill away.
Create a fire escape plan. This can be a family
project. Using graph paper create a map of each floor of your home,
including all possible emergency exits, like windows and doors. Map out
one, and two if possible, escape routes from each room. If you have a
second story, include routes that use lower story roofs and home
emergency window ladders. Choose a place far from the house to meet as a
family once each person escapes the house. Make sure there’s a clear
landmark like a street sign or large tree to avoid frightened or
panicked family members becoming disorientated. Decide in advance who
will help younger children out of the house. Practice getting out of the
house and meeting at the family meeting spot with your children at
least twice a year. This can be a fun family activity. Have everyone
start in bed blindfolded to simulate a smoky, nighttime fire. Practice
staying low to the ground or crawling, covering your mouth with a cloth,
and checking doors to see if they’re cool to the touch and safe to
open. Once you get outside, remove the blindfold and head to the meeting
spot. Time the escape from start to finish to ensure your family can
make it out in a reasonable amount of time.
Choose an emergency meeting place in case of evacuation.
Chances are your family members will be in separate locations when
disaster hits. If your neighborhood is unsafe or has been evacuated,
choose a place to meet. It should be accessible by every member of the
family, in a safe area (e.g. out of the flood zone), and not in an area
that gets congested during an evacuation. Each family member or
caregiver should have a map with the designated location and alternative
routes to get there clearly marked.
Know who to contact in case of an emergency. Often
during an emergency, local phone lines are down and cell towers are
overloaded, making it impossible to connect with family members or
caregivers who are not with you. Designate a first and second contact
person, that way if a family member isn’t able to make it to the meeting
point they can get a message to the rest of the family through the
contact person. Choose people far outside the local area who would
likely be unaffected by the disaster.
Don’t forget your pets. Include your dog or cat in
your emergency plan. Designate one person to be in charge of crating and
carrying the animals in an emergency evacuation, and if your pet sleeps
in a crate, releasing him in case of fire.
Fires, natural disasters, and other emergencies can be scary,
especially for children. Developing a smart plan of action, practicing
the plan, knowing who is responsible for doing what, and having the
right supplies on hand can not only give you peace of mind, it can also
be the difference between handling an emergency and a experiencing
family tragedy.
P.S. This post was proposed to me for publication by Jeralyn Nelson. I'm therefore publishing it by her invitation and
under her permission. See also the link below fore more information:
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