When is National Preparedness Month?
September is National Preparedness Month, which means it’s time to prepare for any disaster at home, in the office, or in the community. Sponsored by Ready.gov, this year’s theme is “Preparing for Older Adults.”
According to the AICPA, 60% of Americans believe a natural disaster may impact them within 3 to 5 years. With almost every corner of the country susceptible to a disastrous event, it’s better to be prepared than to be caught in a dangerous situation.
If you work with older communities, visit Ready.gov’s Older Adults page for specific information on how to best support the people you care about.
The team at LifeSecure wants to help you with these four ways to prepare during National Preparedness Month.
4 Ways to Prepare as an Older Adult During Preparedness Month 2023
1. Make A Plan
Where will you go if there’s a tornado? Or a hurricane? How will you communicate your status to your loved ones?
When an emergency hits, thinking of an effective plan is challenging when your mind races with many other thoughts. Save yourself time and stress by thinking ahead and making an emergency plan.
2. Build An Emergency Kit
Emergency kits can be the difference between life and death. Whether stranded on the road or caught in a hurricane, you need to be sure you have supplies to support you and your family through the entire event and recovery—plan to have enough supplies for each household member, including any pets.
To avoid the stress and difficulty of buying each piece of equipment individually, LifeSecure put together various emergency kits for different situations. Since we’ve started building emergency kits, LifeSecure has saved over 1,000,000 lives.
3. Prepare for Disasters
Know the necessary safety procedures if you live in an area especially susceptible to earthquakes, tornadoes, or other disasters.
While natural disasters are not preventable, you can prevent personal disasters by staying alert.
Contact your insurance company to ensure you are covered for emergencies, and keep your eyes on weather reports or alerts.
4. Get Your Benefits Delivered Digitally
Any type of weather disaster has the potential to disrupt your mail service. If you rely on getting your benefits through the mail, delays could impact you dearly.
If you utilize federal benefits such as social security, call 800-333-1795 or register online to have everything directly deposited into your bank accounts. Don’t let a natural disaster ruin your financial stability.
Personal Disaster Preparedness for People with Disabilities
When building emergency preparedness kits, people with disabilities must consider more specific items.
If you use a wheelchair, “add spare tires and an air compressor to your emergency kit to ensure you can stay mobile in the event of an emergency.” For people suffering from vision loss, list out on your plan the location of the nearest accessible public transportation, hospital, and emergency services.”
During a blackout, people using medical equipment that requires electricity need to know their options for how to keep it running. You can ask your doctor for best practices to keep them running and contact the local power authorities to put you on a priority power restoration list.
Also, don’t forget to contact your local emergency management office “to self-identify to receive targeted assistance during emergencies and disasters.”
To avoid serious injuries during a disaster, make sure you are well-prepared ahead of time.
Need Supplies During National Preparedness Month?
Be prepared. Most disasters are inevitable, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be ready for when they strike.
At LifeSecure, we take emergency preparedness seriously. We offer a variety of safety kits for any event. With our kits, you can rest easy knowing you are prepared to weather any storm. Take advantage of National Preparedness Month and get your kit today.
