In recognition of National Emergency Preparedness Month, the Brighton Office of Emergency Management (OEM) will share an emergency preparedness tip with citizens each week throughout the month of September to encourage all citizens to prepare themselves and their families for natural and human caused disasters. The goal is to increase public awareness about the importance of preparing for emergencies and to motivate individuals to take action.Tip #2: Ten things you can do to be more prepared to respond to an emergency situation, and to help others in your community.
1. Develop family emergency plans so information on various hazards can be discussed for awareness purposes and initial response actions. Recovery efforts will be easier to implement if everyone has an understanding of what could happen while at home, work, or school. These plans can include:
· Fire preparation and evacuation - making sure you have working fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, and knowing how and where to evacuate your home/school/work and where to meet outside of that location.
· Evacuation Plans – make sure you know the major routes in your area. Have the needed supplies to make a quick evacuation. Know where your shelter locations are and educate your family members on this plan if you are separated.
· Shelter-in-Place Plans – make sure you know what this means and how to get your home prepared for this. Have the proper supplies to stay in home for up to 72 hours. All planning should ensure that everybody, including caregivers, knows what to do in the event of any type of emergency or disaster.
· Develop an emergency communication plan with your family. Designate an out-of-state friend or relative who will act as a central point for messages from family members; it may be easier to reach an out-of-state phone than to place local calls if communications infrastructure is disrupted. Put critical phone numbers in everybody’s cell phones and in their wallets.
2. Develop and practice several types of plans at home so everyone is aware of what to do. Know and understand the warning systems. Practice makes perfect.
3. Talk to a neighbor, relative, or co-worker and encourage him or her to develop these various plans as well and practice them with their family members. Network with your neighbors and build support systems for one another. Reach out to the elderly, shut-in, or disabled population. Ensure that they have practical plans for responding to emergencies, including current information on how to contact family, friends or neighbors who will come to their aid. Offer to help them create plans and emergency kits. Elderly people or people with disabilities who live alone tend to become isolated and may hesitate to ask for assistance. People helping people.
4. Begin developing in-place sheltering capabilities. What would your family need if you could not leave your house and nobody could get to you for several days? What if you had no power and there was a snowstorm?
5. Develop evacuation plans for your family, in case you are instructed to leave the neighborhood on short notice. Know in advance who will pick up the kids from school, where you would meet locally, and where you would meet several miles out of town. Have a list prepared in advance of the critical things you would want to take with you. Keep extra cash on hand. Fill your gas tanks when they are half-empty, so you never have less than half a tank of gas in each vehicle.
6. Make sure that all of your pets have current vaccinations and that you have copies of all of those records.
7. Make a donation to an organization that provides assistance in the event of a disaster. This could include local services such as Meals On Wheels, local animal shelters, the Red Cross, Salvation Army, etc.
8. Volunteer within your community. Know and understand how you can assist the local government during emergencies or disasters. Your skill set may be needed. Check with current organizations such as the Red Cross, Salvation Army, Goodwill, food banks, local churches and get involved.
9. Give blood.
10. Register for Brighton’s next “Be Ready” class, an 8-hour class that covers many aspects of preparing for and responding to an emergency.
11. Extra Credit! Share this list with others in your neighborhood, your community, or your workplace. Get the conversation started.
