An Evacuation Plan During Severe Weather Can Save Your Family

As severe weather kicks up across the great state of Colorado and throughout many other parts of the United States, the well-being of your loved ones increasingly becomes a concern. We want the same thing you do – to ensure that everyone remains safe even in the roughest of storms.

While you’ll be able to “weather the storm” in most situations, there are times when you may need to evacuate your home to ensure everyone’s safety. To help you prepare, we’ve compiled a list of evacuation tips below:

Have a Plan of Where to Go

Before you even think about evacuating your home, you need to pick a place for your family to go so you can all be safe. This includes situations where you evacuate when you’re all together and those where you are forced to evacuate separately. Be sure that everyone is aware of the location and knows how to get there.

Pick a Primary Route and Alternates

You definitely need to have an established route for an evacuation so that you remain focused and on-task. Simply “winging it” at the time is a bad idea, to say the least. And in addition to a primary route, have alternate routes figured out just in case your first or second choice isn’t accessible.

Create Emergency “Bug Out” Bag

In previous blogs, we’ve talked about the importance of having an emergency bag full of supplies for your family, plus one for any pets in your household. These bags should include necessities that will help you stay safe and nourished away from home for at least several days (maybe even a few weeks) without needing to replenish most of the supplies.

Choose an Outside Contact Person

Establishing an outside person far outside the evacuation area as a primary contact will allow you to “check in” if you evacuate separately. This person can either be at a location where the family will eventually be reunited or could act as a point of contact for routinely checking in so that all family members know that everyone else is okay. Make sure that each individual in your group has memorized this person’s phone number. Do not rely on your phone’s contact list.

Fuel Up Your Vehicles

Whether an evacuation occurs quickly or you’re provided with ample prep time, you need to ensure that your vehicle has enough fuel to get you far away from the area. If you get a warning beforehand, gassing up your automobile is one of the first things you should do before fuel becomes scarce or there are huge lines at the pump.

Pay Close Attention to Young and Elderly Household Members

Family members who can’t fend for themselves such as young children and elderly family members should be given special attention during an evacuation. Young children need to know that they will be safe while elderly, sick, or disabled family members understand that they are not holding the family back and are an essential part of the process.

Don’t Forget Your Pets

Every evacuation plan should include your pets, whether you have dogs, cats, rodents, birds, or reptiles. As briefly discussed above, these pets need to have an emergency “bug out” bag, too. In fact, one way to keep younger family members calm is to put them in charge of carrying the pets or knowing where they are, because this will give them something to focus on aside from the situation.

Keeping your family safe during a severe storm should always be your biggest concern, but you must also consider what to do about any extensive damage that occurs to your home. The crew at Abbotts Fire & Flood has the knowledge, experience, and equipment necessary to get your life back to normal as quickly as possible. Give us a call when you need us and we’ll be there!