- Venture outdoors with extreme care. If power lines are down do not go near them or touch them.
- Keep your kids and pets inside as much as possible.
- Keep all calls to a minimum to allow emergency calls to get through.
- Do not wade through flooded areas with bare feet. Floodwater may be contaminated by sewage and other contaminants. Construction debris such as nails, wooden splinters, shards of glass and chunks of concrete are likely to be in the water. These can puncture or cut your feet resulting in a bad infection and a wait in the emergency room.
- Continue to monitor local media.
- Disinfect water to kill disease carrying microorganisms.
- Don't turn on your main breaker until you ensure that the secondary (individual) breakers are off. Once you switch on the main breaker, turn on the secondary breakers one at a time to check for electrical faults. If a fault is detected, turn off the main breaker immediately and contact an electrician.
- Never use generators indoors. The carbon monoxide fumes from the exhaust could cause poisoning and death.
- Never refuel a generator while it is running or hot.
- Never taste food to determine its safety. Discard any perishable food (such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs and leftovers) that have been above 40 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours or more.
- Keep yourself hydrated with plenty of drinking water and fluids.
- Don't let your animals roam loose. Familiar landmarks and smells may have disappeared causing them to be disoriented.
- If your vehicle gets inundated with water, don't attempt to start it. Have it checked out by a mechanic with the proper diagnostic equipment.
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Good morning! Just stopping by from SITS. Great info on disaster preparedness!
ReplyDeleteThese are great tips. We never when we will need to use these. I've shared and starred this post. Thanks for sharing this information.
ReplyDeleteGood tips.
ReplyDeleteI just hate when the power goes out for too long and I have to throw out everything in the freezer/fridge.
Great tips, Fruitful! Our power went off all the time in Kenya and stopped buying meat for the freezer because we were tired of having to toss it.
ReplyDeleteHi Inspired Dreamer,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and for the compliment.
Hi Evelyn,
You're right, we never know when we will need it so its best to be prepared. Thanks for spreading the word.
Hi Yaya,
When food has to be thrown out it is such a waste, so the more we can keep from throwing out the better.
Hi Cairo Typ0,
Thanks. I cannot begin to imagine how frustrating that must have been.