Emergency Preparedness: Be Ready For Anything!

September is National Preparedness Month—a time to make sure you and your family are ready to respond in the event of an emergency. The Y is committed to helping families live safe, secure and connected lives, and we’re proud to work with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the American Red Cross to help communities respond to and recover from emergencies. To help ensure the safety and well-being of you and your family, the CDC recommends:

CREATING A PLAN. Designate a meeting place for your family just outside of your home and a second meeting place outside of your neighborhood in case you must evacuate. Gather important phone numbers for work, school, medical professionals and an out-of-town relative, and make sure all family members know how to send a text message.

MAKING A KIT. Assemble emergency kits with at least three days’ worth of supplies, and store them in your home, office and vehicle. Kits should include water, non-perishable foods, a flashlight, a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, a first-aid kit, cash, copies of personal documents and more. For a complete list of recommended items, visit ready.gov.

STAYING INFORMED. Know what emergencies are likely to occur in your area and specific ways to respond to each of them. Find out how you can be notified of potential threats, be it through text alerts, emergency sirens, etc., and consider purchasing a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) emergency alert radio, which automatically notifies you when an alert is issued.

GETTING INVOLVED. Learn to respond to medical emergencies by taking a CPR/first-aid class. You can also get involved in volunteer activities to make communities safer, stronger and better prepared, like Citizens Corps and the Medical Reserve Corps.

To learn more about preparing to respond in the event of a disaster, visit www.emergency.cdc.gov/preparedness.

Download mobile apps from the American Red Cross at www.redcross.org/prepare/mobile-apps.

Source: CDC