Have an emergency plan in place: Huron Perth public health

The region's public health officials are urging residents in Perth and Huron counties to have a plan in place.

With Emergency Preparedness Week having started Sunday, Huron Perth public health officials decided to take the opportunity to remind area residents that emergencies can strike at any time. Given that unpredictability, the message — and the central theme of the week — is to have an emergency plan for every season.

“Every household is encouraged to have an emergency plan,” public health inspector Dale Lyttle said in a release.

“Taking action to ensure you and your family are prepared for emergency situations throughout the year can help lessen the impact and stress of these events.”

The three main messages during this Emergency Preparedness

Week are:

■ Know the risks;

■ Make a plan; and

■ Get an emergency kit. Knowing the risks in your particular community is critical for preparation and knowing how to act in these specific circumstances. For example, people living in communities near areas prone to forest fires need different preparations than residents of towns where tornadoes are a much bigger risk.

For Perth and Huron counties, the risks can include extreme heat, floods, severe storm events, tornadoes and infectious disease.

Families should develop and practise a plan together that specifies what to do and where to go in the case of an emergency, officials said.

The plan should also specify meeting locations or methods of getting in touch if your family is not in the same place.

“A plan will help you and your family know what to do in case of emergency,” public health officials noted in the release.

The final facet — the emergency kit — is important to have and should be checked regularly to make sure it remains intact. While there are certain items that should be common to every one of these kits, including water, batteries, flashlights and first-aid supplies, families should also consider the individual needs of their household: Are there needed medications, like an Epipen, or special supplies like diapers or nursing bottles, that should be included?

Public health recommended that emergency kits should be sufficient to take care of a family for at least 72 hours.

During preparations, the emergency planning should also include family pets.

Visit Ontario.ca/beprepared and www.getprepared.ca for online resources to help you and your family prepare for all types of emergencies.