National Preparedness Month: Planning ahead could save your life

JACKSON, Tenn. — The month of September marks National Preparedness Month, and with severe weather and floods happening across the country, there are ways you can prepare for the unexpected.

“This is the time where we encourage people to make plans to prepare for disaster before a disaster strikes, here in West Tennessee we could have anything from flooding to tornadoes,” said Mallory Cooke, Public Information Officer for the Jackson-Madison County Regional Health Department.

To prepare, you want to have a bag or box stored in your home with essentials that will help you when you’re in a state of emergency.

“Go ahead and prepare now for power outages, they can happen, they will happen, make sure you’re stocked up on batteries, have flashlights available, sign up for local alerts and warning systems, when we have severe weather coming our way make sure you have battery powered or hand crank radio,” said Cooke.

For a disaster, you want to create a plan on where you will go before, during and after an emergency.

“Talk with your friends and your family about how you will communicate before, during and after a disaster, have a communications plan, if there were to be a disaster you have a designated meeting point, where you would go,” Cooke said.

Make sure you have enough food, water, and medications that can last you at least 72 hours just in case you don’t have access to the items.

“Now don’t wait until disaster strikes to make a plan, this month is all about making sure that your family is ready in case disaster does strike,” said Cooke.

You can download the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency’s ReadyTN app, which has shelter information, road conditions and more.

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