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Your Family Disaster Plan
Disaster can strike quickly and without warning. It can force you to evacuate your neighborhood or confine you to your home. What would you do if basic services--water, gas, electricity or telephones--were cut off? Local officials and relief workers will be on the scene after a disaster, but they cannot reach everyone right away. Families can--and do--cope with disaster by preparing in advance and working together as a team. Follow the steps listed below to create your family's disaster plan. Knowing what to do is your best protection and your responsibility.
4 STEPS TO SAFETY1. Find Out What Could Happen to You Ø Contact your local Red Cross chapter or emergency management office--be prepared to take notes. Ask what types of disasters are most likely to happen. Request information on how to prepare for each. Ø Learn about your community's warning signals: what they sound like and what you should do when you hear them. Ø Ask about animal care after a disaster. Animals are not allowed inside emergency shelters because of health regulations. Ø Find out how to help elderly or disabled persons, if needed. Ø Find out about the disaster plans at your workplace, your children's school or day care center, and other places where your family spends time. 2. Create a Disaster Plan Ø Meet with your family and discuss why you need to prepare for disaster. Explain the dangers of fire, severe weather, and earthquakes to children. Plan to share responsibilities and work together as a team. Ø Discuss the types of disasters that are most likely to happen. Explain what to do in each case. Ø Pick two places to meet: 1. Right outside your home in case of a sudden emergency, like a fire. 2. Outside your neighborhood in case you can't return home. Everyone must know the address and phone number. Ø Ask an out-of-state friend to be your "family contact." After a disaster, it's often easier to call long distance. Other family members should call this person and tell them where they are. Everyone must know your contact's phone number. Ø Discuss what to do in an evacuation. Plan how to take care of your pets. 3. Complete This Checklist Ø Post emergency telephone numbers by phones (fire, police, ambulance, etc.). Ø Teach children how and when to call 9-1-1 for emergency help. Ø Show each family member how and when to turn off the water, gas, and electricity at the main switches. Ø Check if you have adequate insurance coverage. Ø Get training from the fire department for each family member on how to use the fire extinguisher (ABC type), and show them |
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Preparedness Information |
