Please, God, we should never ever need any of this.
But just in case, we have to do our part! An organized home should have precautions and preparations in place for a time of need: power outage or damage following a major hurricane or snowstorm, a flood, a stranded car, a fire…
This section of this site is done for now. Here is a summary (with links) of the pieces of a good emergency preparedness plan:
- fire alarms with batteries that are regularly checked (Bli Neder, OJH will remind everyone each daylight savings change–sign up for the email on the upper right column!)
- a carbon monoxide alarm in your home (something like this works well and isn’t too expensive)
- fire extinguishers in your home (one in the kitchen plus one for sleeping areas, plus one in your emergency kit)
- knowledge of where your water and gas shut-off valves are (if applicable) and the tools to turn them
- an escape ladder in you have a second or third story (here is a good one for only about $35)
- an emergency plan you have rehearsed with your kids
- emergency cards with necessary information including contact information, allergies, etc.
- a home emergency kit: with water, food, clothing and shoes, medications, etc. (keep it updated, too!)
- a car emergency kit
It’s uncomfortable to think about and can add up financially, but even preparing some of these things is good. Don’t let a need for perfection trip you up! Get started today and take baby steps. I sure hope we don’t need it, but I feel better knowing that my family and I (and OJH readers!) and well taken care of.