Alabama is still dealing with hurricane season, and state officials are offering information to help keep Alabamians safe during National Preparedness Month in September. Safety experts say preparedness should be an all-hazard approach. This means being on guard for weather-related events like hurricanes and tornados as well as issues related to the state’s two nuclear power plants.
Dr. Wes Stubblefield is the District Medical Officer at Alabama Department of Public Health. He said one of the most important aspects of preparedness is creating an emergency plan.
“Family members need to know where they need to go in case of emergency, what resources they have, if they don't have that [then] where they would potentially communicate or unify. That's an initial place to start,” he explained. “If people are dealing with health care needs, they should maybe undergo a discussion with their health care provider, particularly when it when it comes to children.”
Trying to plan for emergencies can be overwhelming. Experts suggest breaking it down into a three-step process: make a kit, make a plan and stay informed.
The first step in getting prepared is creating a personalized emergency plan to cover steps to do before, during and after an emergency. This Make A Plan form from Ready.gov can help with getting organized once a plan is put together.
The form lists emergency contacts and has places to list meeting places, the names of doctors, pediatricians and veterinarians and other important information so that everyone will be on the same page, even if they’re separated from one another during or after an emergency.
One of the most important things Alabamians can do is put together an emergency kit. This kit will help through the days after an emergency while waiting for power to be restored or to be able to access homes again.
Preparedness experts say an emergency kit should include:
- Water --- 1 gallon per person, per day
- Food --- 2-week supply of non-perishable food per person
- Manual Can Opener
- Medications --- 1 months’ worth of all prescription medications. Don't forget to rotate your stockpile based on expiration dates!
- First Aid Kit
- Flashlight
- Radio
- Clothes
- Personal Care Items --- soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, feminine products, etc.
- Important Documents --- copies of IDs, birth certificates, deeds, bank account information, etc.
Dr. Stubblefield with the Alabama Department of Public Health said there are some extra items to add to the kit that people may not think about.
“For every individual family, people should consider things like chargers for electronics, potentially extra batteries. They would think about several changes of clothing, three to five days as medication, cash on hand, anything like that,” he said.
Federal and state agencies and local news outlets use a variety of apps and alert systems to provide up-to-the-minute updates and alerts. These will go directly to cell phone and help when it's time to act. This includes the FEMA app and the Emergency Alert System (EAS).
National Preparedness Month started as a project of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security. The organizations wanted a way to share information to help the public prepare for and respond to emergencies.
More information on emergency preparedness can be found here.
