Be Informed!

Our guest blogger, Jeff Gurney, shares the last step in our three part Be Red Cross Ready preparedness plan. Get a Kit, Make a Plan, and now Be Informed. Thank you Jeff for sharing your preparedness wisdom!

Probably the most important of the three parts of being prepared is to be informed. We can have all sorts of equipment, make our plan, but with out the correct information we are limited. Information can come from a lot of different sources. Make sure that when you are looking for information to make yourself better prepared that the information is coming from a trusted source.

Some of the best sources that I have found are the ones that explain things in a format that makes things easy to understand. One of the best sources I have found is the Red Cross web site. I know, sounds like a shameless plug. The Red Cross website has all sorts of useful information. They have also been doing this sort of stuff for a long time. During an emergency it is easier to remember things that were simple to follow in the first place.

A few other places that I have found that have some very good information are the city library and the state websites. The library has a lot of information, you just need to sort through most of it. You will find varying opinions on what the different authors find as “important information”. The state websites I have found, have some of the best advise. This information is usually gathered from the best minds in the business.

Another source of useful information are some of the dedicated survival and preparedness websites, such as In Case of Emergency, Read Blog. Some of these have information that should be taken with a grain of salt, but most have some type of helpful information that you can use in the education process. Remember that each family or persons plan is different and we all have different needs. Adjust your plan to fit your specific needs. You can have all the equipment in the world and still not know how to best use what you have.

Knowing what to do in an emergency can literally save your life or the life of a loved one. Have as much medical info as you can consume, and know the best way to deal with the emergency at hand. Stay up with radio and news reports during an emergency. These things will tell you what to expect next or if the emergency is over.