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National Preparedness Month

Submitted by Lorene Bartos, UNL Extension Educator

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September is National Preparedness Month. Is your family prepared for a potential disaster? This month is set aside to increase public awareness of possible disasters and how to be prepared for emergencies. Since there is a wide range of emergencies and disasters knowing what to do is important and can save lives and property. We think of major disaster as tornados, floods, fires, as well as snow and ice storms. Any can be equally devastating to a family who lose a home, furnishings and keepsakes.

To be prepared The U.S. Department of Home Security recommends the following:

Be Informed - Learn more about different threats that could affect your community and appropriate responses to them. Go to and for more information about natural disasters and potential terrorist threats including biological, chemical, nuclear and radiological emergencies.

Make a Plan - Plan in advance what you and your family will do in an emergency. Your plan should include a communication plan and address sheltering-in-place and evacuation. Go to and for more information and templates to help get you started. The communication plan should include discussing the types of disaster that could occur and how to respond. It should also include two meeting places in case the family is separated. One could be right outside the home in case of a sudden emergency, such as a fire. The second would be outside of the neighborhood in case everyone cannot return home. Make sure everyone knows the address and phone numbers. It is also good to have an out-of-state friend as a "family contact." Everyone must know the contact’s phone number so they can let them know where and how they are.

Make a Kit - Make a kit of emergency supplies that will allow you and your family to survive for at least three days in the event an emergency happens. The kit should include basic items like water, food, battery powered radio, flash light and a first aid kit. It is helpful to have a disaster kit in your car. Check items and rotate water and food supplies every six months.

Get Involved - After preparing yourself and your family for possible emergencies, take the next step: get training in first aid and emergency response and get involved in preparing your community. Citizen Corps provides residents with opportunities to prepare, train and support local emergency responders. Or volunteer through your local American Red Cross Chapter. For more information or to get involved visit to find your local Citizen Corps council or to find your local Red Cross Chapter.

Other things to consider doing are:

Take a inventory of your home and household goods. Pictures, as well as a list, by room are helpful if it is necessary to replace items after a disaster. It is hard to remember every little thing one has in their home.

Keep important family documents in a waterproof portable container. These may include your will, insurance policies, contracts, deeds, stocks and bonds, passports, social security cards, immunization records, back account numbers, inventory of valuable household goods and important telephone numbers and family records (birth, marriage, death certificates, etc.).

Be safe rather than sorry. Start your preparedness plan today.