Getting your family prepared for a big emergency situation like a hurricane or an earthquake or a tornado or an ice storm or . . . . . . can feel quite overwhelming.
Where do we begin? And how can we possibly get ready for it? There are so many possible scenarios. There’s so much information out there. Where should we start? Lots of people get immobilized by the perceived magnitude of the effort. It’s just too daunting to think about. Others feel like it’s hopeless, that the odds are so stacked against us, there’s no reason to even try.
I hope to take the overwhelmedness out of it for you by providing an action plan that is tailored to your specific family. And I hope to inspire you to start picking away at those actions by showing you how it can help your family be more comfortable, less stressed, and more self-sufficient in any emergency situation.
My preparedness philosophy is based on three basic principles:
1. You will never be completely ready, but you can be much better prepared. (Hence, More Ready Today.)
2. Preparing for most any emergency situation helps you be better prepared for just about any other emergency, too.
3. It’s important to start now. (Hence, More Ready Today.)
You won’t ever really be ready. No matter how much water, food, and supplies you put away. No matter how many skills you learn. No matter how many redundancies upon redundancies you have, there likely will be some aspect of the emergency situation that seems to trump your preparedness. This is due to the unpredictable nature of such situations, and sometimes their sheer magnitude.
Just start. With each small step that you take, you’ll make your life a whole lot easier and less stressful than if you do nothing. I suggest that all families take the first two steps immediately. Now. Today. Then pick away at other preparedness steps that you’ll read about in this blog and elsewhere. You might be surprised how much of the plan you already have accomplished and didn’t even realize it.
This is Important – DO THIS TODAY!
I recommend that if you haven’t yet taken these first two steps, do them today. These two actions cost little to no money and take very little time to implement. What are those first two all-important steps?
- Store at least 3 gallons of water per person in unbreakable containers. (And don’t forget water for your pets, too.)
- Develop a simple communication plan for your family.
No excuses. Do it! I don’t want to hear about the snow in your yard that can be melted or the lake a block away or the water in your toilet tanks. Buy packaged water, or find or buy containers and fill them with water. Fill them now. Don’t wait until you find out how much chlorine to put in them in a future post. Fill them now.
Your family communication plan should include:
- A list (on paper, not just electronically) of all the important phone numbers for your family; with a copy for each family member
- The phone number of an out-of-the-area person that everyone in the family agrees to call first in an emergency; this person will act as an information hub for you
- A meet-up location outside your house in case you have to evacuate quickly
- A meet-up location not in your neighborhood in case you can’t get home.
In future posts, I’ll share more on the why’s and how’s of these two steps, as well as loads of information on other actions and useful tips that will help your family to be more ready for the next big one.
More Ready Today! 