Evacuation Plan
Having an evacuation plan is very important for your family. In an emergency, every second counts, so you want to be as prepared as possible. Evacuation plans can be useful for many different types of disasters: hurricanes, tsunamis, and statistically more common, house fires. House fires are one of the most common disasters people face in this country so it is important that everyone has an evacuation or fire escape plan, and practice it regularly. Watching the Family Emergency Preparedness Plan DVD can be very helpful in designing your plan.
Everyone in your family should know the plan, even the little ones, so set aside an evening when the whole family can get together to make your emergency escape plan. Follow these simple steps and you will be ready for evacuation.Evacuation plans can be life-saving for you and the ones you love. Disasters don't just happen to other people. They are very real and can happen to anyone at anytime. Take the time to plan and prepare and you will be very grateful you did.
Make a map of your home and include the following:· Label every exit, including doors, windows, and hallways, which may become a potential fire escape. · In every room, label the primary exit (usually a door or hallway) and a secondary exit (usually a window) in case the primary exit is blocked by smoke or flames. · Label every room where a family member sleeps. · Label the main shutoff valves of the gas, electricity, and water lines. · Establish a safe meeting place outside the home so everyone can be accounted for.
Practice your emergency evacuation plan. No evacuation plan will work unless it is practiced on a regular basis.· Involve everyone. It is important for everyone in the family to learn how to escape. You may even want to teach your children how to escape out of windows in case the door is unavailable to exit.
A good fire escape ladder is essential if your exit is through a second story window. You may want to arrange the furniture so a dresser or nightstand is under the window to make it easier to escape, especially through basement windows. ·
Place your 72 hour kits strategically near an exit so they are easy to grab in a hurry. When you practice, assign certain family members to be in charge of grabbing the emergency kit. · Practice turning off utilities (gas valves, etc.). Caution: Don't really turn off the gas. If you do the gas company will have to come out and turn it on again. A gas wrench is a useful tool for this. ·
Practice other life-saving habits such as always leaving a pair of shoes, gloves and a flashlight or lightstick at each person's bedside. · Practice with time in mind. Try running through your disaster plan at least 4 times each year and adjust your plan according to the ages of family members. Other Things to Keep in Mind:·
Designate an out-of-town and an out-of-state contact person for your family to call in case you separate. Have emergency and contact numbers posted by a phone and have everyone memorize the phone numbers. · Practice using your 72 hour kit supplies. Make sure you include a good first-aid kit, including Burnfree pain relieving gel.
Need fire protection for your home, check out Roofsaverssprinklers. http://www.thisismytownusa.com/roof-saver-sprinklers.php
Tips and Important policies homeowners should know to protect their home against wildfire destruction and damage.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Emergency Prepredness? How prepared are you?
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
How prepared are you?
Since 9/11, most of us have been focused on the emergency preparedness with potential terrorist threats or natural disasters. Very few of us have stopped to consider our own personal emergency preparedness plans to deal with emergencies.
Everyone needs to assess their ability to survive a terrorist threat, natural disaster, or something as simple as a stolen wallet. But attempting to sort through all the articles, websites and information advising what to do to prepare for emergencies is overwhelming.
Over the last years tornadoes, hurricanes, fire or other emergencies, you need to make a workable framework to use for our own personal emergency preparedness.
We want to share what we have done personally to prepare for emergencies in hopes that it helps you to better prepare for emergencies, big and small.
Important Documents:
Several of our friends have suffered through fires at their homes. In their haste to leave their homes, they found that their important documents were scattered all over the home and could just not be retrieved. One simple solution is to put all important documents, or copies of them, in a binder that can be easily taken out of the home in case of a quick evacuation. Our binders are bright red, clearly marked with “Emergency Binder,” and are placed in an easily accessible location, such as a bookcase or closet near the door. In the event of an impending hurricane, these binders can easily be placed in a large zip-lock bag to assure water-tightness if an evacuation is mandated or the roof leaks.
A selection of baby and marriage pictures or anything else that is precious should also be assembled and located with the emergency binders. Ask yourself: “If I can take only the number of pictures that I can carry, what would they be?” One solution is to scan your precious pictures into your computer and save them on a portable device such as a disk or jump drive.
Scanning your important documents might also be a solution, but be aware that certain documents needing an original signature or a notarized signature may not be acceptable if scanned and printed by computer.
Cash:
When the Year 2000 was approaching, we were told to stockpile a little cash in case the ATM machines did not work over the Millennium. That is still good advice today in the case of an emergency. Hurricanes, tornadoes and snowstorms frequently result in power outages. Cash may be your only option to purchase necessities. Whether it is $200 or $500 or more, having a little cash will prove useful in an emergency when the ATM machines are not working or where no one can take your credit or debit cards
.
Home Equipment:
A little soul-searching is in order to determine what items you would take with you if you had to leave in less than one hour. Would it be your computer, or iPod? How long would it take you to unhook all the wires? Thinking through how you would get everything in the car for all family members is another good exercise to go through.
Food Basics:
Purchase a three day supply of food for your family and put it in large plastic containers. Be sure the containers are sealed to keep out insects and rodents. You can prepare and consume the food, replacing it during our normal shopping trips.
If you choose to keep your “emergency supply” separate from your pantry items, be sure to note when the food is approaching the expiration dates. At that time, eat or donate the food to Area Food Banks and then immediately replace the food in the emergency supply.
First Aid Kits: Most of us have some sort of First Aid kit in the house. Pulling together what is really needed was an eye-opener. Most of the items can be purchased and kept for many years. It can also be used not only for emergencies like the ones discussed here, but for everyday cuts and scrapes.
Be sure to take the peculiarities of your family members into account when putting this kit together. One member may be allergic to iodine or another may have an issue with the pain medication. Think this through so that in the event an emergency, a sick or injured family member can be made as comfortable as possible until help arrives.
Communication Plans:
It is important to decide how family members are going to communicate with each other during an emergency, especially if they are separated geographically. Choose a remote location and a remote family member or friend who will act as the central communications point. Knowing where to go, if home is not an option, will relieve the problems
Care Decisions:
Perhaps one of the most overwhelming responsibilities that falls upon the spouse or children is that of care decisions. Many family disagreements, indecisions, and lawsuits are the result of poor planning regarding the care of a loved one in a medical emergency.
Your family needs to be aware of your wishes. A Living Will can take care of the big decisions, but there are many smaller issues that need to be addressed. Do you want to be placed in a nursing home if rehabilitation care is necessary? Do you want home care if you qualify? What if you don’t qualify for insurance benefits? Would your family know how to begin the process of getting state assistance, Medicare benefits, or enrollment in a research protocol? Who do you want to be the primary decision-maker of your daily care in the hospital, doctor’s office or care facility? Is one of your children more versed in healthcare than the others, and if so, how do you prepare your family members to listen and then participate in the decisions?
Preparing an obituary in the midst of mourning is overwhelming.. A potentially gut-wrenching task can become a joint venture in pre-writing her obituary. Funeral and obituary requests should be known long before there is an unexpected death in the family. Good Luck and do your homework. Cotact Roof Savers Sprinklers for help to prepare for a fire issue at: http://www.thisismytownusa.com/roof-saver-sprinklers.php
How prepared are you?
Since 9/11, most of us have been focused on the emergency preparedness with potential terrorist threats or natural disasters. Very few of us have stopped to consider our own personal emergency preparedness plans to deal with emergencies.
Everyone needs to assess their ability to survive a terrorist threat, natural disaster, or something as simple as a stolen wallet. But attempting to sort through all the articles, websites and information advising what to do to prepare for emergencies is overwhelming.
Over the last years tornadoes, hurricanes, fire or other emergencies, you need to make a workable framework to use for our own personal emergency preparedness.
We want to share what we have done personally to prepare for emergencies in hopes that it helps you to better prepare for emergencies, big and small.
Important Documents:
Several of our friends have suffered through fires at their homes. In their haste to leave their homes, they found that their important documents were scattered all over the home and could just not be retrieved. One simple solution is to put all important documents, or copies of them, in a binder that can be easily taken out of the home in case of a quick evacuation. Our binders are bright red, clearly marked with “Emergency Binder,” and are placed in an easily accessible location, such as a bookcase or closet near the door. In the event of an impending hurricane, these binders can easily be placed in a large zip-lock bag to assure water-tightness if an evacuation is mandated or the roof leaks.
A selection of baby and marriage pictures or anything else that is precious should also be assembled and located with the emergency binders. Ask yourself: “If I can take only the number of pictures that I can carry, what would they be?” One solution is to scan your precious pictures into your computer and save them on a portable device such as a disk or jump drive.
Scanning your important documents might also be a solution, but be aware that certain documents needing an original signature or a notarized signature may not be acceptable if scanned and printed by computer.
Cash:
When the Year 2000 was approaching, we were told to stockpile a little cash in case the ATM machines did not work over the Millennium. That is still good advice today in the case of an emergency. Hurricanes, tornadoes and snowstorms frequently result in power outages. Cash may be your only option to purchase necessities. Whether it is $200 or $500 or more, having a little cash will prove useful in an emergency when the ATM machines are not working or where no one can take your credit or debit cards
.
Home Equipment:
A little soul-searching is in order to determine what items you would take with you if you had to leave in less than one hour. Would it be your computer, or iPod? How long would it take you to unhook all the wires? Thinking through how you would get everything in the car for all family members is another good exercise to go through.
Food Basics:
Purchase a three day supply of food for your family and put it in large plastic containers. Be sure the containers are sealed to keep out insects and rodents. You can prepare and consume the food, replacing it during our normal shopping trips.
If you choose to keep your “emergency supply” separate from your pantry items, be sure to note when the food is approaching the expiration dates. At that time, eat or donate the food to Area Food Banks and then immediately replace the food in the emergency supply.
First Aid Kits: Most of us have some sort of First Aid kit in the house. Pulling together what is really needed was an eye-opener. Most of the items can be purchased and kept for many years. It can also be used not only for emergencies like the ones discussed here, but for everyday cuts and scrapes.
Be sure to take the peculiarities of your family members into account when putting this kit together. One member may be allergic to iodine or another may have an issue with the pain medication. Think this through so that in the event an emergency, a sick or injured family member can be made as comfortable as possible until help arrives.
Communication Plans:
It is important to decide how family members are going to communicate with each other during an emergency, especially if they are separated geographically. Choose a remote location and a remote family member or friend who will act as the central communications point. Knowing where to go, if home is not an option, will relieve the problems
Care Decisions:
Perhaps one of the most overwhelming responsibilities that falls upon the spouse or children is that of care decisions. Many family disagreements, indecisions, and lawsuits are the result of poor planning regarding the care of a loved one in a medical emergency.
Your family needs to be aware of your wishes. A Living Will can take care of the big decisions, but there are many smaller issues that need to be addressed. Do you want to be placed in a nursing home if rehabilitation care is necessary? Do you want home care if you qualify? What if you don’t qualify for insurance benefits? Would your family know how to begin the process of getting state assistance, Medicare benefits, or enrollment in a research protocol? Who do you want to be the primary decision-maker of your daily care in the hospital, doctor’s office or care facility? Is one of your children more versed in healthcare than the others, and if so, how do you prepare your family members to listen and then participate in the decisions?
Preparing an obituary in the midst of mourning is overwhelming.. A potentially gut-wrenching task can become a joint venture in pre-writing her obituary. Funeral and obituary requests should be known long before there is an unexpected death in the family. Good Luck and do your homework. Cotact Roof Savers Sprinklers for help to prepare for a fire issue at: http://www.thisismytownusa.com/roof-saver-sprinklers.php
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