I received a request to deal with home and family issues when it comes to a disaster, not just employment or major issues of national security. I love getting these requests and spent some time this morning putting together the best tips possible to help prepare your family, and your home, for a disaster of any type.
First, know that you need to have 5 master plans. You need a plan for yourself and the adults in the home, a plan for seniors in the home, a plan for children in the home, a plan for pets in the home, and a plan for anyone with disabilities within the home. No, a blanket "one-size fits all" strategy will not work. You do need individual plans.
Each plan needs to have four core elements. These elements include an emergency medical kit. The kit is going to be very different for pets vs. seniors vs. someone with Multiple Sclerosis, etc. Make sure back up medications, general triage items, and written down phone numbers of doctors and allergies are included in each kit.
The next element is being CPR trained. Yes, you and everyone in your home should know how to provide CPR to humans and pets. Your third element is community resources. Do you know what they are in case of a disaster? If not, call your local Red cross and sign up for an emergency maintenance class. The fourth, and final element, is practicing. Don't tell your children or spouse when you are going to practice a disaster alarm. Instead, surprise him or her (or them) really early in the morning when people's defenses are down and they are groggy. This will give you a great indication of what has to be worked on.
I hope this information provides the basics, but please feel free to ask me more questions on Twitter!
Twyla N. Garrett
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