Get Emergency Ready this National Preparedness Month

As National Preparedness Month, September serves as a chance to remember the importance of preparation and reflect on our readiness should an emergency arise.

John Wyek, of Novato business DefensePro offers affordable Emergency Preparedness courses for families, schools and businesses. DefensePro’s four top tips for preparing for an Emergency are:

1) Keep a pair of boots in a sealed plastic bag, underneath your bed.
Earthquakes can happen while you’re in bed, so keeping sturdy shoes readily accessible will help you implement the rest of your plan.

2) Keep cash in small bills on hand.
Earthquakes can cause power outages, which means ATMs may be out of use and stores may struggle to take card payments. Having cash on hand will allow you to make purchases, and small bills are useful in case others cannot make change for you.

3) Keep your vehicle fueled to at least half a tank.
Gas stations are one of the first things to be affected in a power outage. Ensuring you have gas in your tank is critical in creating a safe route to an unaffected area.

4) Keep one ‘emergency go bag’ in the house, and one in the car.
Disasters are unpredictable but it’s likely you’ll be close to your home or vehicle when one strikes. Make sure you have an emergency kit ready to go in both locations so the necessary items will always be accessible.

Even if you already have an emergency kit and a plan in place, this month is a great excuse to double check your items and ensure you’re ready to go at a moment’s notice.

The following items are courtesy of Fire Safe Marin’s Wildfire Emergency Supply Kit. It includes the essentials you may need and the best part is, you don’t have to leave Novato to find any of them!

The following items are recommended by Fire Safe Marin to take if time allows:

• Credit cards, cash or travelers checks
• Prescriptions or special medications (Ask your doctor for a multi day emergency supply, rotate annually)
• Easily carried valuables
• Three-day supply of non-perishable food and three gallons of water per person.
• Family photos and other small, irreplaceable items
• Personal computer information on hard drives and disks (off site or “cloud” backup is best)
• Chargers for cell phones, laptops, etc

This list by Fire Safe Marin is a great starting point but it’s important to keep in mind there may be items important to you and your family that are not listed. Shop Local Novato hopes you take the time to get organized during National Preparedness Month and remember that your local Novato retailers are always here to help!