Step 1 – Gather and Print Disaster Prep Information

We’re going to focus on something really easy for the first two steps of preparing for an emergency. You can do these in about an hour using your computer, a printer and phone!  Then we’ll move on to food and water.

In this step, you are going to fill a binder with information that you will need after a disaster.

You won’t have access to the internet in an emergency, so you need to have this information printed out or saved onto a device that is on your 15 Minute Grab list.  Some of this information will help you prepare for an emergency.  Other information will help you recover after the disaster has hit.

If you are going to digitally save documents onto a device, be sure to plan for battery backup.  I cover this in Step 6 and as item to include in your Bug Out Bag.  I personally have saved some of the longer publications (the PDFs) on my iPad.

ACTION 1: Get a 1” binder

Who doesn’t love to buy a new binder, right?  There is something very rewarding about organizing information into a binder.  Be sure to also buy a set of 5 Tab Dividers.  Goodwill or other donation organizations are good sources for office supplies if you are on a tight budget.

ACTION 2: Print your Local Emergency Plan

Some communities have a local Emergency Plan with information that is specific to your area.  They will tell you exactly how the city and county plan to roll out services.  Go to both your City and County’s websites to see if they have their Emergency Plan available for download.  The easiest way to find these plans is to use a search engine and search “Your City name” and “Emergency Preparedness.”

ACTION 3:  Sign up with local Alert Systems

Many communities are now using Alert Systems to inform residents of upcoming disasters or recovery actions.  You register your cell phone, email address and/or land line number with a service and then receive alerts when there are issues.  The problem with the Alert System is that it relies on power for computers, cell towers and traditional phone lines. When these go down (such as during tornadoes, large hurricanes or massive fires) then the alerts can’t reach people.  That said, they are great for getting warning messages about dangerous situations and potential evacuation orders.  So be sure to look at your city and county websites to see if there is an Alert System for your area.

Another great resource is www.Nixle.com.  It allows you to register your zip code with their service.  They will then send you text alerts from your local agencies including information about severe weather, criminal activities, traffic issues, missing persons and local events.  You can register online or text your Zip Code to 888777 to Opt In.

Remember that an old school radio will be very important to have after a disaster.  Agencies will use radio broadcasts to update citizens on weather conditions and disaster recovery.  Be sure to add a radio to your kit if you don’t already own one.  Don’t forget to have a good supply of batteries as well!

ACTION 4: Print School’s Emergency Plan & Update Emergency Cards

Most school districts and schools have an emergency plan.  It explains how the students will be released after an emergency.  Sometimes you can download these plans from the school or district websites.  Some schools include the emergency plan in the school handbook.  Call your school if you can’t find the plan online.

After an Emergency, most schools don’t allow a child to leave on their own for safety reasons.  They will only release children to their parents or people listed on the Emergency Card.  Make sure you have provided a good list of people who can pick up your child if you can’t get to the school.  Include friends who live close to the school.  Make a copy of the Emergency Card and keep it in your binder.  Take a photo of the card using your cell phone.  You want to be able to get to the cell numbers of those friends quickly if you are trying to coordinate someone to pick up your child.

ACTION 5: Create a Communication Plan

Phones will be unreliable after a disaster.  Even mobile phone networks will be overloaded.  Text messages will be the best way to communicate because they require less bandwidth. You want to make sure that everyone in the family knows in advance where to meet up after a disaster and who to contact to give a status update.  It may be easier to contact someone out of the disaster zone than within it, so you want to establish an out-of-town contact.

FEMA provides detailed brochures on how to create an effective Communication Plan.    You will find these publications in the table with publications for Families and Children.

ACTION 6: Download FEMA Mobile App

FEMA has a free app for your phone!  It provides information on preparedness, response and recovery resources. Click here to get more information on this mobile app.

ACTION 7: Recommended Books

Click here to check out the books I recommend. Much of the information in disaster preparation books can be found in the publications below. Books are also heavy to carry in an evacuation situation. So my list includes books that I feel are “worthy” of carrying in a bag. In particular, the First Aid books and the one on surviving a nuclear disaster are my top picks. I don’t want to be guessing in critical situations. Those are reference books that I will want at my fingertips.

The books about food storage and preparation are very useful, but not critical. I would recommend checking them out at the library first.

ACTION 8: Print or Order Publications

The tables below provide links to many publications that will help you prepare or recover from a disaster. You can print these yourself, but they will use up a lot of ink.  It is much easier to order the FEMA publications FOR FREE. The first publications in the table are the FEMA catalogs and order forms. Print the order forms and start making a list of the ones that you want to order. Then fax, email or phone your order into FEMA. It’s that simple!

SHORTCUT!

Click on this SHORTCUT for ordering FEMA Publications link to create an email to send to FEMA.  I list all of the main publications to order so that you can copy and paste them into an email.  Be sure to still check out the catalog to see if there are other publications that you want.

 

Publication Tables