National Preparedness Month - Are You Really Prepared?

9/4/2018 (Permalink)

Do you have an evacuation plan? Do you have a central location in case of tornado or severe storms planned? Do you have a plan to communicate with your family before, during and after an incident? Do you have an emergency supply kit? Do your children know when the time is right to go to the basement when you aren't home? 

September is National Preparedness Month, take the time and make sure your family has a plan in place for any kind of emergency.  Practice that plan, as silly as some may think it sounds it is better to run a fire drill at home making sure everyone knows what to do than to be unprepared when the emergency happens.

Don't wait until its too late to prepare for an emergency.  Make sure to sign up for alerts and warnings for your area, and download other necessary apps to stay informed, such as the FEMA app and the local weather service app offering early warning of upcoming severe weather.

Learn Life Saving Skills

Do you or someone in your family know CPR or standard first aid? Could you turn off your natural gas, water, or electricity if necessary?  Knowing these life saving skills could mean life or death in an emergency situation for you, your family or your neighbors.

Check your Insurance Coverage

Have you reviewed your insurance coverage recently to see if you’re covered in a disaster? Evaluate which hazards are relevant to your area and obtain the appropriate insurance for your home, business, or other property and become familiar with your coverage.

Save for an Emergency

Are you financially prepared in case of a disaster? Does your family have an emergency fund for unexpected expenses after a flood or fire? Check out FEMA’s Emergency Financial First Aid Kit for an in-depth document to help you identify and compile important documents and account information all in one spot. Just search “EFFAK” on fema.gov for the free PDF.

Whether its flood, tornado or extreme winter weather, we must work together as a team to help ensure everyone is prepared, our families, businesses, places of worship and neighborhoods. Contact the professionals at SERVPRO® of Spencer and Iowa Great Lakes to find out how they can turn disaster back “Like it never even happened”.