Disaster preparedness takes on a whole new meaning when we become parents. We are now not only responsible for ourselves but also for one or more extremely dependent little ones for whom our strongest primal instinct is to protect from harm. Additionally, since we live in earthquake country and in the age of terrorist threat, we really have no excuse for not being adequately prepared.
We all know that we should have emergency preparedness kits in our homes and vehicles, yet few of us do. The basic necessities of water, food, first aid, flashlights, batteries, radio, fire extinguisher, gas wrench, gloves, matches, blankets, etc. should be in everyone’s kit. Parents should plan for their children’s unique needs including, formula, bottles or sippy cups, juice, diapers, wipes, medications, vitamins, Band-Aids and clothing.
A logical question is how do I pack all of these things for my home and multiple vehicles? The good news is that prepackaged kits are available with standard items to which you can supplement to meet your needs. The American Red Cross (www.redcross.org) and numerous online retailers offer a wide variety of kits in convenient packaging. These prepackaged kits are a great way to jumpstart to your preparedness, but there is more to do.
- Supplement and regularly refresh your kits with those items unique to your family’s stage (e.g. medications, clothing, food etc.).
- Securely brace tall pieces of furniture to the walls and consider latching upper cabinets to prevent contents from spilling out during an earthquake.
- Develop a Family Disaster Plan that includes rendezvous location(s) and remote contact person(s) to act as a communication liaison.
- Teach your kids age three and older what to do in the event of earthquake and fire including exit routes from each room in the home.
I cannot comprehensively cover emergency preparedness tips in this small column, but I hope that I have peaked your interest to update and enhance your level of preparedness. Again, we have an enormous responsibility to protect our family and no excuse for not doing so. Both the Red Cross and the Govenor’s Office of Emergency Services (and many others) have lots of excellent resources available online to help you further.