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Make a plan today. Your family or those in your circle may not be together if a disaster strikes, so it is important to know which types of disasters could affect your area. Know how you will contact one another and reconnect if separated. Establish a family meeting place that everyone knows and is easy to find.

Here are four steps to help your family make a disaster plan to protect your family. Here are some questions to answer together:

1. How will I receive emergency alerts and warnings?

2. When making the disaster plan think about the special needs of you and your family. Talk about needs and responsibilities and how people in your circle can help each other with communication, care of children, business, pets or operating any medical equipment needed. Keep in mind these things when making your disaster plan:

3. Create an emergency plan for family or for those in your circle.

4. Disasters happen quickly and often times without any warning. What you do or do not do now will set the tone for what happens to your family and property during a disaster. Take steps today and throughout the rest of the year to protect your family and property before a disaster happens.

1. Learn first aid, CPR, and put together a first aid kit for your home and car: https://www.redcross.org/get[1]help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/anatomy-of-a-first-aid-kit.html

2. Learn how to use a fire extinguisher: https://www.usfa.fema.gov/prevention/outreach/extinguishers.html

3. Know how to shut off utilities such as gas, water, and electricity safely: www.ready.gov/safety-skills

4. Write down or type up a list of your household belongings. This can help if you have to file an insurance claim for things that get destroyed from a disaster.

5. Make sure you have the right type and amount of home insurance or renters’ insurance for your things.

6. Keep important papers and other valuable items in a waterproof container and make copies to keep online or at another location.

7. Direct water away from your house. Clean gutters and make sure the water drains away from your home to prevent flooding.

8. Secure objects outside the home. Do you have loose shingles, trash cans, outdoor sports equipment, or patio furniture? All these things can be picked up by the wind; make sure to secure these objects to avoid damage to your home during a storm.

9. Trim or remove dead, damaged or rotting trees and limbs. Your home should be at least a full-grown tree’s height away from the base of any tree, usually about 40 feet away.

10. If living in a manufactured home, be sure that the wheels and axles are fixed to a permanent foundation and the anchoring system is installed properly.

For more ways to protect your home and family from disasters visit www.ready.gov.

This information is provided by the Iredell County Health Department.

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