The recent earthquake in Japan should be a strong reminder that we should be as prepared as much as possible for earthquakes we well could experience here. Also we should try to learn from the Japanese on what we could do differently. When preparing for earthquakes, we must plan on having enough food and water as well as clothing, medical supplies and other necessary equipment for ourselves and our families for at least 72 hours. Assistance from our fire and police departments may not be immediately available following an earthquake. The following is a list of emergency supplies recommended from http://earthquake.usgs.gov:
- Fire extinguisher.
- Adequate supplies of medications that you or family members are taking.
- Crescent and pipe wrenches to turn off gas and water supplies.
- First-aid kit and handbook.
- Flashlights with extra bulbs and batteries.
- Portable radio with extra batteries.
- Water for each family member for at least two weeks (allow at least 1 gallon per person per day) and purification tablets or chlorine bleach to purify drinking water from other sources.
- Canned and package foods, enough for several days and MECHANICAL can opener. Extra food for pets if necessary.
- Camp stove or barbecue to cook on outdoors (store fuel out of the reach of children).
- Waterproof, heavy-duty plastic bags for waste disposal.
Many of these emergency supplies can be assembled and put in a kit that is easily accessible if we have to leave. We also need a family communication plan and prepare our homes ahead of time to have minimal damage after an earthquake. Ready America suggests the following steps we should take now to help us in this effort. (http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/earthquakes.html)
Step 1: Get a Kit
Get an Emergency Supply Kit, which includes items like non-perishable food, water, a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, extra flashlights and batteries. You may want to prepare a portable kit and keep it in your car. This kit should include:
- Copies of prescription medications and medical supplies;
- Bedding and clothing, including sleeping bags and pillows;
- Bottled water, a battery-operated radio and extra batteries, a first aid kit, a flashlight;
- Copies of important documents: driver’s license, Social Security card, proof of residence, insurance policies, wills, deeds, birth and marriage certificates, tax records, etc.
Step 2: Make a Plan
Prepare Your Family
- Make a Family Emergency Plan. Your family may not be together when disaster strikes, so it is important to know how you will contact one another, how you will get back together and what you will do in case of an emergency.
- Plan places where your family will meet, both within and outside of your immediate neighborhood.
- It may be easier to make a long-distance phone call than to call across town, so an out-of-town contact may be in a better position to communicate among separated family members.
- You may also want to inquire about emergency plans at places where your family spends time: work, daycare and school. If no plans exist, consider volunteering to help create one.
- Be sure to consider the specific needs of your family members
- Notify caregivers and babysitters about your plan.
- Make plans for your pets
- Take a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) class. Keep your training current. (Classes may be taken from our Syracuse City Fire Dept.)
Step 3: Be Informed
Prepare Your Home
- Fasten shelves securely to walls.
- Place large or heavy objects on lower shelves.
- Store breakable items such as bottled foods, glass, and china in low, closed cabinets with latches.
- Hang heavy items such as pictures and mirrors away from beds, couches, and anywhere people sit.
- Brace overhead light fixtures.
- Repair defective electrical wiring and leaky gas connections. These are potential fire risks.
- Secure a water heater by strapping it to the wall studs and bolting it to the floor.
- Repair any deep cracks in ceilings or foundations. Get expert advice if there are signs of structural defects.
- Store weed killers, pesticides, and flammable products securely in closed cabinets with latches and on bottom shelves.
- Identify Safe Places indoors and outdoors like under sturdy furniture or against an inside wall away from where glass could shatter around windows, mirrors, pictures or where heavy bookcases or other heavy furniture could fall over.
- Find out how to keep food safe during and after and emergency by visiting: http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/emergency/index.html
Thanks for your interest. We must learn from disasters around us. The earthquake in Japan can teach us a lot about what we need to do, to be better prepared for earthquakes.
