Has anyone else been wondering what you as an individual or family could do to help prepare yourself in the event of a natural disaster? There are things you can do that might make things easier in the event you need to evacuate or "hunker down" in your home for a period of time without electricity.
A helpful website on preparing for such emergencies would be Ready.gov.
Ironically enough, September is National Preparedness Month. National Preparedness month is co-sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security and the Red Cross. We have seen the toll a natural disaster takes on these two organizationsa as well as countless others. I think individual preparedness is important for each of us, if only for peace of mind.
Here is some of what Ready.gov suggests:
* Get a Kit - Get a kit of emergency supplies that will allow you and your family to survive for at least three days in the event an emergency happens. The kit should include basic items like water, food, battery powered radio, flash light and a first aid kit. Go to www.ready.gov and www.redcross.org/preparedness for a complete list of recommended supplies.
* Make a Plan - Plan in advance what you and your family will do in an emergency. Your plan should include a communications plan and address sheltering-in-place and evacuation. Go to www.ready.gov and www.redcross.org/preparedness for more information and templates to help get you started.
* Be Informed - Learn more about different threats that could affect your community and appropriate responses to them. Go to www.ready.gov and www.redcross.org/preparedness for more information about natural disasters and potential terrorist threats including biological, chemical, nuclear and radiological emergencies.
* Get Involved - After preparing yourself and your family for possible emergencies, take the next step: get training in first aid and emergency response and get involved in preparing your community. Citizen Corps provides residents with opportunities to prepare, train and support local emergency responders. Or volunteer through your local American Red Cross chapter. For more information or to get involved visit www.citizencorps.gov to find your local Citizen Corps council or www.redcross.org/preparedness to find your local Red Cross chapter.
We have seen the need for this first hand in the last week. Let's all make sure we are prepared if anything were to happen to us.
Someone over at the Catholic Answers forum has also suggested preparing a "Spiritual Emergency Kit" with things like Holy Water, a small Bible, a Rosary, the Daily Office or other spiritual readings.
3 comments:
Thank you. These are practical measures that people need to be reminded of. All households should do an occasional inventory of these items.
I frankly spend most of my time convinced that this kind of thing would never be necessary, but in light of recent events, its probably prudent to be as prepared as possible for one's situation.
That's true. I also especially agree on the spritual emergency kit such as bible and blessed candles, holy water, etc. which should be accesible at all times.
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