APHA’s Get Ready campaign says Set Your Clocks: Check Your Stocks with the time change on Nov. 6

Think back to the last emergency you experienced: It might have been one of this year’s many earthquakes, or a storm, hurricane or wildfire. You may have lost power, or have been forced to evacuate. When you pulled out your emergency supplies, were they all there and ready to be used?

For many people, the answer to that question is “no.” With the busyness of everyday life, it’s easy to forget about those things you only need once in awhile.

But when an emergency or disaster strikes, the last thing you want to find is that your stockpile of batteries has corroded, or that all your flashlights have gone missing. An emergency is not the right time to be running out to the store, and which in some cases, may put you in danger.

That’s why you should use this weekend’s clock change as a reminder to refresh your emergency supplies. When daylight saving time ends this Sunday and you go to change your clocks, take some time to check your emergency supplies as well. That’s the message of the Get Ready: Set Your Clocks, Check Your Stocks campaign.

Set aside a few minutes to see that everything you need is in your stockpile and that nothing has gone bad or leaked, such as food and water. Every American should have at least three days of food and water stored at all times, including one gallon of water per person per day. Your stockpile should also have basic supplies such as flashlights, batteries, a radio and first aid supplies. Other items, such as a battery-operated cellphone charger and lanterns, are also useful. Check out this Get Ready checklist (PDF) to see what you need to add to your supplies.

The Set Your Clocks: Check Your Stocks website is full of information you can use to build your emergency stockpile, or to encourage others to do so. Resources include PDF fact sheets on why it’s important to have emergency supplies, budget stockpiling, stockpiling for pets and water stockpiling.

You can even add your organization’s logo to the fact sheets and share them at community events.

Taking a few minutes this weekend to set your clocks and check your stocks can save you a headache or even worse later and keep you and your family safe. (And don’t forget to check your smoke alarm batteries!)