Flood safety awareness: What to do to get ready

Photo by Liz Roll/FEMA

True or false? Floods only happen during hurricanes and in places close to sea level.

Answer: False. The truth is that floods can occur in unexpected places. According to the National Weather Service, flooding can occur in any state at any time of the year. That means you should be prepared for a flood emergency even if you don’t live close to the water.

Floods are serious business: They cause an average of $5 billion in damage annually and about 100 deaths. The majority of those deaths occur while driving, particularly during flash floods. Flash floods can be the most dangerous because they happen with little warning.

This is National Flood Safety Awareness Week, sponsored by the National Weather Service. The week is a great opportunity to make sure you and your family are ready for a flood emergency.

Here are some things you should keep in mind:

• Do not try to cross flooded areas — the water may be deeper and moving more swiftly than it appears. If your car gets stuck in a flood, do not open the car door. Try to climb out through car windows, if possible.
• Keep up to date on tetanus shots in case you are hurt during a flood. Adults need a tetanus booster shot every 10 years.
• Store nonperishable food in waterproof containers in a high place. Stock one gallon of bottled water per day per person in your household, and plan on at least three days of supplies.
• During post-flood cleanup, wear gloves and regularly wash hands in clean water — boiled, if from the tap — and soap.

Check out our Get Ready flood fact sheet so you’ll know what to do before, during and after a flood happens. Come high water, you’ll be ready!

Today’s the day: Remember to check your stocks!

Did you remember to turn your clocks ahead for daylight saving time this weekend? We hope so!

There’s one more thing we want you to remember to do: Check your stocks. It’s easy to forget about your emergency supplies until a storm or power outage happens, but that’s no time to find you’re out of something important.

That’s why today is a perfect day to check your emergency stockpile. Make sure that you have flashlights, fresh batteries and a manual can opener. Check your canned food to make sure that nothing has expired. Have at least one gallon of water on hand for each person in your household for at least three days — and have extra for your pets!

If you don’t have an emergency stockpile, you can start today. We have great fact sheets with tips on stockpiling food and water, and advice on how to stockpile on a budget.

After you’ve taken care of your own stockpile, remind your loved ones to check their supplies, too. Send them an email, post it on Facebook, send out a tweet!  A few minutes of preparedness today can make a big difference the next time an emergency happens!

Spread the word: It’s almost time to set your clocks and check your stocks!

How often should you refresh your emergency supplies? At least every six months on any easy-to-remember date. That's the reasoning behind the Get Ready: Set Your Clocks, Check Your Stocks  campaign: To remind people to refresh their emergency stockpile twice a year when they adjust their clocks for daylight saving time.

We've created a range of free materials to remind people to check their emergency preparedness stockpile — from logos and e-cards to sample tweets and a video.

And for those who don't have an emergency stockpile, we also have fact sheets about stockpiling food and water, as well as tips for stockpiling on a budget. If you run a health center or agency, library, business or other organization, you can even add your own logo to our fact sheets!

Check out the Set Your Clocks, Check Your Stocks materials on our website.
Don’t forget to spread the word!

Check out our new emergency preparedness cookbook, “Recipes for Disaster”

Did you know that March is National Nutrition Month?

We know what you’re thinking: “What’s nutrition got to do with emergency preparedness?” Actually, it’s really smart to think about nutrition when you’re preparing for emergencies, because food is an important part of any emergency stockpile.

Last year, we held our Emergency Stockpile Recipe Contest to get people thinking about what they’d cook if the power went out. We got a lot of great recipes, which we announced on the blog in April.

Now, we’ve taken those recipes, along with recipes from our own staff, and created a free cookbook called “Recipes for Disaster." The cookbook also includes tips for stockpiling food and water, advice on putting together an emergency kit on a budget and even checklists so that you know what to pack.

You can download “Recipes for Disaster” here. We hope it makes it a little easier — and tastier — to get prepared!

Let us know your favorite recipe in the comments.