Important Steps to Increase Safety During a Tornado

Here we are, just two months into the “tornado season” and the destruction has been profound.   From Wisconsin to North Carolina to Missouri to Alabama, the recent tornadoes have been ruthless and deadly.  This path of devastation has left many people wondering what they can do to stay safe.  Tornadoes are a difficult disaster to mitigate because they can happen quickly and without warning.

While it is true that we cannot control their velocity we can prepare for tornadoes by having and maintaining a plan.  At a very basic level, everyone should know how to seek shelter during a tornado.  The ultimate goal is to get as low as possible and in a safe and secure place during a tornado.  It is important to remember that where you go is dependent on the type of structure.

If you are in a structure that has a basement or storm cellar, this is where you should go.  If the structure does not have a basement, you should move to the lowest floor of the building to an interior room with no windows.  Interior room examples include closets, bathrooms, and hallways.  If possible get under something sturdy like a workbench or a table.  If you are taking shelter in an interior bedroom, cover your body with the mattress.  

Mobile homes are not structurally adequate to provide shelter from a tornado even if the home is anchored or tied down.  If you live in a community that has a designated tornado shelter, you should go there immediately.  If there is not a designated shelter, go to any nearby building.  If there is not a structure within walking distance and the tornado is not insight, flee in your car to the closest structure.  In the worst case scenario, if there is not time to flee, leave your mobile home and ride the storm out on low ground, in an open space away from any trees or mobile homes.  If you find yourself in this situation, protect yourself by laying flat and using your hands to cover your head.  Remember, it is safer to be outside then in your mobile home during a tornado.   


While knowing where to go during a tornado is invaluable knowledge, there are also things you can do prior to a tornado to enhance your overall safety.  Please see the safety tips below:

• Tornado Drill:  Practice tornado drills at home with your family or roommates at least twice a year.  This will help to ensure that all members of your household will remember the shelter location during an emergency. 
• Tree Maintenance:  Limit damage by removing dead or dying trees from your property.  Also look for damaged or diseased limbs and remove them as well. 
• Secure Outdoor Items:  When there is a severe weather watch or a tornado watch, secure loose items outdoors.  For example, bring in your lawn furniture and take down hanging plants. 
• Stay Informed:  Listen to local news stations or a NOAA Weather Radio during a tornado watch to stay informed of approaching storms.  Make sure that you have access to a battery powered radio in case approaching storms knock out the power. 
• Disaster Supply Kit:  Build and maintain a Disaster Supply Kit.  Your kit should be stored in the area where you plan to take shelter.

If you would like more information about tornado safety, I recommend downloading and printing the American Red Cross Tornado Safety Checklist.  This one page guide provides an actionable checklist detailing things to do before, during, and after a tornado.

Written by Kate Schweigart

Now That You Have a Disaster Supply Kit…Maintain!

Remember the mad rush for duct tape and plastic sheeting when the terror alert moved to orange in 2003?  At the time, the government kicked off its “Make a Kit, Have a Plan, Stay Informed” campaign.  Many Americans did indeed respond to the media blitz and built a disaster supply kit.  Now, eight years later, these fully stocked and well organized kits are sitting in basements and closets across America collecting dust.

Like testing your smoke alarms and your carbon monoxide detector, maintaining your disaster supply kit should be incorporated into your routine.  To ensure you are prepared, you should check your kit every six months.  If your kit is one of the many kits currently collecting dust, please pull it out, dust off the cobwebs, and walk through the check list below. 

Food

• Check your canned food for dents and corrosion, anything that looks suspicious should be thrown out. 
• Check your boxed and packaged food to ensure that the product is still sealed.  Again, anything that looks suspicious should be thrown out or added to your compost.   
• Check the expiration date on all your food, anything that is expired should be replaced. 

• Keep your food in a tightly sealed metal or plastic container to keep it safe from animals and pests. 

• I recommended trading out your food every six months.  That will help to ensure that you are not disgusted by the prospects of eating eight year old beans when and if you should use your kit!

Water

• Check the integrity of the package; throw out anything that is leaking or with a broken seal.
• Check the expiration date on you water, anything that is expired should be tossed or used to water your garden. 
• Like food, I recommend replacing your water every six months.

Electronics

• Test the device to ensure it is working. 
• Ensure that you are not storing batteries in your electronic devices.  As with all electronic devices, if you are not planning to use if for more than 30 days, the batteries should be stored separately. 
• Look at the expiration date of unopened batteries and exchange batteries that will expire in the next six months.
• Test any open batteries in the devices to ensure they are working.

First Aid Kit

• Review the contents of the First Aid Kit and replace any items that have expired.

After you have finished updating your kit, label the outside of the container with the date; this simple step will make it easy for you to remember when your kit needs updating again. 


Written by Kate Schweigart

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Government Uncertainty and Disaster Supply Kits

The national media has been dominated with news of a possible government shutdown.  Whichever end of the political spectrum you fall on, there's one thing everyone can agree on: many people now find themselves in an uncertain situation over which they have no control.  This feels kind of like a disaster, right? Although it is certainly not of the magnitude of an earthquake or a tsunami, the current uncertainty and lack of control can leave anyone feeling vulnerable.   A good way to combat these feelings is it to take your own steps towards personal preparedness. 

Essential functions are the lynch pin of every agency or business continuity plan.  There is a lot of talk right now, particularly here in the DC Metro area, about which Federal functions are essential.  One question we should all ask ourselves is "What items do I consider essential?"  One answer, no matter what the disaster, is a disaster supply kit.  Maintaining a disaster supply kit will help you to ensure that you have the resources you need to remain self-sufficient in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. 

The items I have listed below are essential to any disaster supply kit.  Ideally, you should have these items stored in easily accessible, portable containers so that you can easily load the kit into your vehicle in the event of a mandatory evacuation:

Water: One gallon per person, per day (recommend at least a 3 day supply)	Food:  Non­perishable, easy to prepare items (recommend at least a 3 day supply)
Can opener	Moist towelettes and hand sanitizer
Flashlight	Extra batteries
Battery­ powered or hand­crank radio (NOAA Weather Radio, if possible)	Multi­purpose tool to turn off utilities
First aid kit	Medications and pertinent medical information
Personal hygiene items	Cell phone with chargers and/or solar chargers
Extra cash	Family and emergency contact information
Emergency blanket	Rain Poncho and change of clothes
Local Map	Personal Security Alarm or Whistle to signal for help
Copies of personal documents (proof of address, deed/lease to home, passports, birth certificates).	Trash bags and ties

I hope that the government will not shutdown and all of the recent preparations will be chalked up to another expensive exercise in "what if?"  We can look at the uncertainty of the current situation and think about our own vulnerabilities and what we can do to prepare.  Outside of casting a ballot and contacting our Members of Congress, we cannot control the political environment.  However, there are aspects of our own environment that we can control to include increasing our level of personal preparedness by building a disaster supply kit.  Take control and build a disaster supply kit this weekend.


Written by Kate Schweigart