Talk. Discuss with your family members the
disaster that can happen where you live. Establish
responsibilities for each member of your household and plan
to work together as a team. Designate alternatives in
case someone is absent. If a family member is in the
military, also plan for how you would respond if they are
deployed. Include the local military base resources
that may be available.
Plan. Choose two places to meet after a
disaster:
- Right outside your home, in case of a sudden
emergency such as a fire.
- Outside of your neighborhood, in case you cannot
return home or are asked to evacuate your neighborhood.
Learn. Each adult in your household should
learn how and when to off utilities such as electricity,
water, and gas. Ask someone at the fire department to
show you how to use the fire extinguisher.
Tell everyone in everyone in the
household where emergency information and supplies are kept.
Make copies of the information for everyone to carry with
them. Keep the information updated.
Practice evacuating your home
twice a year. Drive your planned evacuation route and
plot alternate routes on a map in case main roads are
impassable or gridlocked.
Include your pets. If you
must evacuate, take your animals with you. If it is
not safe for you to remain, it is not safe for them.
Support you community plans by
volunteering in the community and by giving blood.
More than one million people in the U.S. server their
communities. They come from all walks of life and
backgrounds and are of all ages. Red Cross volunteers
help people in emergencies. They translate for
non-English speakers so that everyone can receive Red Cross
services, teach first aid classes and organize blood drives.
They connect members of the armed forces stationed overseas
with their families during major family events. These
vital community services are made possible by people like
you. Contact your local Red
Cross chapter and ask how you can help.
Give blood. Blood is needed in times of
emergency, but the ongoing need is also great. Every
two seconds someone in America needs a blood transfusion -
cancer patients, accident victims, premature infants and the
list goes on. Your blood donation means so much to the
individuals who need it, and you can make a difference by
giving blood. For additional information about blood
donations, click here.
