Preparedness Tips
As a public safety reminder Nevada Division of Emergency
Management/Homeland Security urges the public to be prepared in the event an
emergency causes you to be self-reliant for three days without utilities and
electricity, water service, access to a supermarket or local services, or maybe
even without response from police, fire or rescue. Are you ready?
Ready is a national public service announcement (PSA)
campaign designed to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond
to emergencies including natural and man-made disasters. The goal of the
campaign is to get the public involved and ultimately to increase the level of
basic preparedness across the nation.
The Nevada Division of Emergency Management/Homeland
Security recommends preparing for such an event can start with four important
steps:
- BE INFORMED - Learn what protective
measures to take before, during and after an emergency. Know what hazards could
happen in your community, and identify sources of information in your community
that will be helpful.
- PLAN AHEAD - MAKE A PLAN - Prepare, plan and stay
informed for any emergency.
- BUILD A KIT - Build an emergency supply kit
for you and your family and be prepared for any disaster.
- TAKE ACTION - GET INVOLVED - Find opportunities to
support community preparedness.
- KIDS - PARENTS - EDUCATORS - Disasters affect everyone - find the resources to prepare now!
Build an Emergency Supply Kit
The first step is to consider how an emergency might affect
your individual needs. Plan to make it on your own, for at least three days.
It's possible that you will not have access to a medical facility or even a
drugstore. It is crucial that you and your family think about what kinds of
resources you use on a daily basis and what you might do if those resources are
limited or not available.
Think first about the basics for survival - food, water, clean air and any
life-sustaining items you require. Consider two kits. In one kit put everything
you will need to stay where you are and make it on your own for a period of
time. The other kit should be a lightweight, smaller version you can take with
you if you have to leave your home.
Recommended basic emergency supplies include:
- Water, one gallon of water per person per day for at least
three days, for drinking and sanitation
- Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food and a can opener if
kit contains canned food
- Battery-powered or hand crank radio, a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert & extra batteries for both
- Flashlight and extra batteries
- First aid kit
- Whistle to signal for help
- Dust mask to help filter contaminated air and plastic sheeting and duct tape
to shelter-in-place
- Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
- Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
- Local maps
- Pet food, extra water and supplies for your pet or service animal
Include Medications and Medical Supplies:
If you take medicine or use a medical treatment on a daily basis, be sure you
have what you need on hand to make it on your own for at least a week. You
should also keep a copy of your prescriptions as well as dosage or treatment
information. If it is not possible to have a week-long supply of medicines and
supplies, keep as much as possible on hand and talk to your pharmacist or
doctor about what else you should do to prepare.
If you undergo routine treatments administered
by a clinic or hospital or if you receive regular services such as home health
care, treatment or transportation, talk to your service provider about their
emergency plans. Work with them to identify back-up service providers within
your area and the areas you might evacuate to. If you use medical equipment in your
home that requires electricity to operate, talk to your health care provider
about what you can do to prepare for its use during a power outage.
Additional Items:
In addition, there may be other things specific to your personal needs that you
should also have on hand. If you use eyeglasses, hearing aids and hearing aid
batteries, wheelchair batteries, and oxygen, be sure you always have extras in
your home. Also have copies of your medical insurance, Medicare and Medicaid
cards readily available, if you have a service animal, be sure to include food,
water, collar with ID tag, medical records and other emergency pet supplies.
Include Emergency Documents:
Include copies of important documents in your emergency supply kits such as
family records, medical records, wills, deeds, social security number, charge
and bank accounts information, and tax records. It is best to keep these
documents in a waterproof container. If there is any information related to
operating equipment or life-saving devices that you rely on, include those in
your emergency kit as well, and also make sure that a trusted friend or family
member has a copy of these documents. Include the names and numbers of everyone
in your personal support net- work, as well as your medical providers, if you
have a communication disability, make sure your emergency information list
notes the best way to communicate with you, also be sure you have cash or
travelers checks in your kits in case you need to purchase supplies.
Make a Plan for Any Emergency
The reality of a disaster situation is that you will likely
not have access to everyday conveniences. To plan in advance, think through the
details of your everyday life. If there are people who assist you on a daily
basis, list who they are and how you will contact them in an emergency. Create
your own personal support network by identifying others who will help you in an
emergency. Think about what modes of transportation you use and what
alternative modes could serve as back-ups. Make a plan and write it down. Keep
a copy of your plan in your emergency supply kits and a list of important
information and contacts in your wallet. Share your plan with your family,
friends, care providers and others in your personal support network.
Create a Personal Support Network:
If you anticipate needing assistance during a disaster, make a list of family,
friends and others who will be part of your plan. Talk to these people and ask
them to be part of your support network. Share each aspect of your emergency
plan with everyone in your group, including a friend or relative in another
area who would not be impacted by the same emergency who can help if necessary.
Make sure everyone knows how you plan to evacuate your home, school or
workplace and where you will go in case of a disaster. Make sure that someone
in your personal support network has an extra key to your home and knows where
you keep your emergency supplies.
Develop
a Family Communications Plan:
Your family may not be together when disaster strikes so plan how you will
contact one another and review what you will do in different situations.
Consider a plan where each family member calls or e-mails the same friend or
relative in the event of an emergency. It may be easier to make a long-distance
phone call than to call across town, so an out-of-town contact, not in the
impacted area, may be in a better position to communicate among separated
family members. You may have trouble getting through, or the phone system may
be down altogether, stay calm and remain patient. In
an emergency, cell networks may not work, make sure everyone in your family
knows how to text. Use social media platforms
to update friends & family.
Deciding to Stay or Go:
Depending on your circumstances and the nature of the emergency, the first
important decision is whether you stay or go. You should understand and plan
for both possibilities. Use common sense and available information to determine
if there is immediate danger. In any emergency, local authorities may or may
not immediately be able to provide information on what is happening and what
you should do. However, you should monitor radio, television, official social
media sites or call 211 for information and official instructions as they
become available. If you're specifically told to evacuate or seek medical
treatment, do so immediately. If you require additional travel time or need
transportation assistance, make these arrangements in advance.
Create a Plan for Your Pets & Service Animals:
Whether you decide to stay put in an emergency or evacuate to a safer location,
you will need to make plans in advance or your service animal and pets. Keep in
mind that what's best for you is typically what's best for your animals. If you
must evacuate, take your pets with you, if possible. However, if you are going
to a public shelter, it is important to understand that by law only service
animals must be allowed inside. Plan in advance for shelter alternatives that
will work for both you and your animals; consider loved ones or friends outside
of your immediate area, pet-friendly shelters and veterinarians who would be
willing to take in you and your pets in an emergency.
Staying Put:
Whether you are at home or elsewhere, there may be situations when it's simply
best to stay where you are and avoid any uncertainty outside. Consider what you
can do to safely shelter- in-place alone or with friends, family or neighbors,
also consider how a shelter designated for the public would meet your needs.
There could be times when you will need to stay put and
create a barrier between yourself and potentially contaminated air outside.
This process is known as "sealing the room." Use available
information to assess the situation. If you see large amounts of debris in the
air, or if local authorities say the air is badly contaminated, you may want to
take this kind of action.
Evacuation:
There may be conditions in which you will decide to get away or there may be
situations when you may be ordered to leave. Plan how you will get away and
anticipate where you will go. Choose several destinations in different
directions so you have options in an emergency. Ask about evacuation plans at
the places where you spend time including work, school, community organizations
and other places you frequent. If you typically rely on elevators, have a
back-up plan in case they are not working.
Fire Safety:
Plan two ways out of every room in case of fire. Check for items such as
bookcases, hanging pictures, or overhead lights that could fall and block an
escape path. Check hallways, stairwells, doorways, windows and other areas for
hazards that may keep you from safely leaving a building during an emergency,
Secure or remove furniture and objects that may block your path, if there are
aspects of preparing your home or workplace that you are not able to do
yourself, enlist the help of your personal support network.
Always Stay Informed
Some of the things you can do to prepare for the unexpected,
such as assembling an emergency supply kit and making an emergency plan are the
same regardless of the type of emergency. However, it's important to stay
informed about what might happen and know what types of emergencies are likely
to affect your region.
Be prepared to adapt this information to your personal
circumstances and make every effort to follow instructions received from
authorities on the scene. Above all, stay calm, be patient and think before you
act. With these simple preparations, you can be ready for the unexpected.
Some basic protective actions are similar across many
different hazards:
Stay Informed Disaster Specific Preparedness
There are important differences among potential
emergencies that should impact the decisions you make and the actions you take.
• How to plan with your household and prepare in advance
so you are ready
• Signs of hazardous events that come with very little
warning
• How to protect your household during the
disaster
• Begin recovery following the initial
disaster
Learn about each type of disaster that could affect
you:
• Natural Disasters
• Technological & Accidental Hazards
• Terrorist Hazards
• Pandemics
• Home Fires