Safety at Home – Prepare Your Home for Emergencies
Why should we prepare for emergencies? Should we bother to do so?
Indeed, why should we?
There are many reasons why we should take a step to prepare for emergencies swiftly.
In fact, we should start preparing today.
Who knew, for instance, that the Coronavirus would become such a big international emergency. Just a few months ago, no one could have imagined that the world would get into the disturbed state it is today.
This illustrates that it is urgent to prepare for emergencies now.
Identify Likely Emergencies
The first step is to learn about the most likely emergencies that can happen in your area.
Some of the most likely emergencies in any area include hurricanes, earthquakes, tornados and flash floods.
Once you identify the kind of emergencies that are likely to occur, you will find it easier to put up an emergency response plan.
Such a plan should adequately address all your common concerns.
So, overall, what can we do to prepare for emergency disasters?
Think about the following practical steps:
Design a Personalized Plan
The first thing is that your plan to deal with emergencies must be personalized. This means it must especially cater to your personal and family interests.
Determine Escape Routes
It is important to determine a suitable escape route.
Remember that during emergencies the normal escape route may be blocked. Include at least two safe places where family members can meet in case they are separated. One suggestion is the place that hosts the mailbox just outside the house.
Choose a second safe meeting place for the same purpose. This should ideally be near the house. Just in case all these routes are blocked, you should identify a third meeting place outside the neighborhood.
This will work well in case of blockage or impassability of all the other routes.
Create a List of Emergency Contacts.
This includes the numbers for the nearest emergency room, the fire department, local police, water gas and similar utilities, the hospital, the family doctor, an established veterinarian, the workplace, a school or a day care.
Emergency Phone or Cell Phone:
Make sure these are available and easily located.
Make sure that your children know how to use the emergency call feature on the phone or cellphone. Make a printed copy of your plan and keep it in an open place within the home.
Make sure you review the plan with your family at least once in a year.
Prepare for Coming Hurricane:
Many states in the USA will soon face to the ravages of a raging hurricane.
As we all know, these hurricanes have the potential to create a big emergency of unimaginable proportions. Indeed, the degree of destruction is likely to be huge.
These hurricanes inevitably cause a break in the normal power grids. Ultimately, this means the power interruption in many areas will be horrendous.
What can you do to prepare for the destructive hurricanes?
Get a Quiet Portable Generator
It is quite a great idea to prepare for this by buying a small portable generator. This can help you survive such emergencies. They will ensure that you enjoy uninterrupted power even in the midst of a storm.
Of course, you would not want to disturb your neighbors by using a noisy generator at such times. They are already overburdened with the ravages of the storm and other problems.
To avoid creating a noisy disturbance or bothering your neighbors in this way, you should buy one of the quiet generators. Such a generator will allow them to sleep in peace.
Prepare an Emergency Kit
Have enough supplies to keep the family going during an emergency. These should last for at least three days. You can keep these safely in a special waterproof container.
In the US, the Homeland Security Department usually provides citizens with a disaster list kit. This generally advises on the basic supplies that a family should have. These include food, water, batteries, matches, first aid supplies and flashlights. You may also include items like cash, prescription medicines, pet food, warm clothing and copies of your most important documents.
Keep this kit in a place that can be accessed easily. Review the contents regularly. Create smaller kits that you can keep at the workplace or in the car.
Prepare a First Aid Kit
As noted one of the essential items that you should pack in preparation for a potential disaster is the first aid kit.
Keep in mind that in case of a disaster you may have to care for injuries yourself. This is because the health care services may be overwhelmed, if at all they are available.
If you keep your first aid kit ready, you will be sure that the needs of your family will be met at the worst hour. This will be possible even if you are unable to reach the nearest health facility.
First Aid Kit Essentials
The Red Cross Society recommends the following items for a first aid kit designed to cater to a family of four: Aspirin, antibiotic ointment, 25 or more adhesive bandages, 2 absorbent compress dressings, 1 roll of adhesive cloth tape, antiseptic wipes or spray, a blanket, tweezers, non-latex gloves, a blanket, and a hydrocortisone cream.
Others include a disposable thermometers, a pair of scissors, the instant cold compress, a 4-inch wide roller bandage, a 3-inch-wide roller bandage, triangular bandages, emergency phone numbers, a CPR breathing barrier, a booklet for first aid instruction, hand sanitizer, family prescription medications, and a flashlight with functional batteries.
Final Thoughts
We cannot imagine living without electricity.
What if you were also unable to access the grocery store because the roads are blocked? Meanwhile, your car is grounded due to a multiplicity of troubles. All these are frightening thoughts that none of us wants to think about.
Unfortunately, these are realities that we must face up to.
At any moment we may have to deal with a hurricane, an earthquake, an ice storm or a tornado. In some places, extreme heat may well convert into an emergency that calls for instant attention.
Yes, we have to swallow the bitter pill and accept that Mother Nature is essentially unpredictable. It is, therefore, important for all of us to know how to deal with such emergencies long before they happen.
This means we have to prepare for it.
We hope that this post will help you deal with any potential emergencies of this nature well in advance.