Plan in advance of what you will do in an emergency. Be prepared to assess the situation and use whatever is at your disposal to take care of yourself and your loved ones. The most important part of the plan should include how you will communicate with others when a disaster strikes.
Most likely your family will not be together when disaster strikes, so plan on how you will contact one another and review what you will do in different situations. Consider a plan where each family member calls, or emails, the same friend or relative in the event of an emergency
. Because there will most likely be a high call volume locally, it may be easier to contact someone out-of-town who may be in a better position to communicate with the rest of the family. It is also important to have multiple means of communication such as cell phones, calling cards, or two-way radios.
Depending on the type of disaster and your current situation, the initial decision generally involves whether or not you should stay where you are or try to get away. This also called shelter-in-place or evacuation
. For more information on these measures, visit www.Ready.gov
It is important to know the emergency plans at work and school
since there is a possibility that a disaster can occur during this time when people are away from their home.