National Preparedness Month: Prepare Your Household for Emergencies

September is National Preparedness Month. Pledge to prepare your household this September by taking these steps:

• Discuss the hazards that could impact your household.
• Develop a Household Emergency Plan.
• Be ready to Shelter-in-Place for at least 72 hours.
• Have a Go Bag and be ready to evacuate.
• Know the Evacuation Routes for your neighborhood.
• Decide on two meeting places where household members should meet after an emergency - one right outside or close to your home and anther outside your neighborhood.
• Practice evacuating from your home using different exits and practice getting to your meeting places.
• Ask a friend or relative who lives outside of the area to be your family's emergency contact. If local phone circuits are busy, long distance calls may be easier to make.
• Plan for everyone in your family especially seniors, those with special needs, and non-English speakers.
• If necessary, fill out a Health Information Card for those in your home.
• Give everyone in your house a copy of your emergency plan and emergency contact information to keep in their wallets or backpacks.
• Twice a year - check your emergency plan and the expiration dates of your emergency supplies when you change your clocks and smoke alarm batteries.
• Don't forget to include your pets in your emergency plans. Make sure they are prepared to evacuate or shelter-in-place.
• Sign up for ReadyNotifyPA, the region's emergency text and email alert system, visit www.readynotifypa.org, or scan the code below.