Prepare Your Family For Natural Disasters

“AARP Mississippi urges members and all Mississippians to take steps to prepare themselves and their families for natural disasters,” said AARP Mississippi Senior State Director Sherri Davis-Garner. “We’ve seen that a disaster can strike at any time.”

Here are some ways you can be prepared:

• Take an inventory of the contents of your home and take photos or videos of the exterior and interior. Keep them in a safe location off the premises.
  
• Talk with your family members and neighbors about a safe place to reconnect, a contact number or somewhere that you will check in if you must evacuate or flee.
  
• Purchase a battery-operated radio and have flashlights with extra batteries easily accessible.
  
• If you have time before you evacuate, lock doors and windows; turn off water, gas and electricity; move valuable objects away from windows and wrap in plastic.
  
• Place copies of vital documents and records (like personal identification, bank statements, wills, prescriptions, Social Security and health insurance cards, and important phone numbers) in a weatherproof container that you can grab as you run out the door. You can use an Emergency Financial First Aid Kit developed by Operation Hope, FEMA and Citizen Corps to help you organize your information.
  
• Have an emergency supply ready – with a change of clothing, prescriptions, extra glasses, cash, water, food, blankets, whistle and face mask.
  
• Put an emergency checklist near the door to make sure you don’t forget anything.
  

Visit Create the Good for evacuation plan tips and information on duplicating vital documents, as well as a toolkit you can use to help friends and neighbors prepare for emergencies.