Emergency Survival
Emergencies can be complete chaos. An Emergency Survival Plan is a critical
The first few minutes are complete mayhem. It can be disorientating. It can be confusing. Panic normally happens. So much depends on the first few minutes and actions that you take. It could be the difference in life and death. For this reason alone, everyone should have an Emergency Survival Response plan.However prepared you are, it will always be a shock, and many people lose their composure, clouding their judgment, and affecting their ability to take responsibility, considered actions. When it comes to emergency survival, it’s just as essential to be mentally and emotionally prepared as it is to have all the right supplies.
Did you know almost 90% of all declared natural disasters are floods?
Emergency Survival Strategy
- Remain calm: This may sound the most infuriating advice for a stressful situation, but emergency survival relies heavily on your ability to remain calm and make considered decisions. If you can stay calm, it is likely your family will feel calmer too.
- Work out your choices: You should quickly consider how extreme the emergency is and whether or not it is necessary to evacuate. Be emotionally prepared to leave your home if it is the safer option: your possessions are not worth your life.
- Alert emergency services: Call 911 if in the United States or 000 if in Australia to request the police, fire brigade or an ambulance. Try to communicate slowly and clearly. Alert emergency services as soon as possible, as they can often take some time to get to you.
- Treat the injured: Make sure you have adequate emergency supplies to hand, and work quickly to make sure all injured people are in a stable condition for adequate emergency survival. To be mentally and emotionally prepared to treat others, it’s a good idea to do a basic first-aid course.
Of course, each different type of emergency requires a different emergency survival plan.
In case of a fire, make sure you have several unobstructed escape routes. Keeping a fire ladder nearby is also a good idea. Make sure your family knows where the escape routes are and have a pre-determined meeting point away from the house if there in case of a fire. If you have children, teach them that smoke rises, so the ‘get down low and go, go, go!’ motto can be quite useful. Of course, have an emergency survival kit[ready in case you need to evacuate quickly.
Emergency survival in an earthquake is a different matter altogether. Most injuries that occur in earthquakes happen as the result of falling furniture, fire, or gas leaks. To prepare your house, attach shelves, cupboards, fridges, and televisions as securely as possible to the floor or walls. Also, make sure any gaseous items (stoves, water boilers, air conditioners, gas bottles, etc.) are safe and secure. When the earthquake strikes, be emotionally prepared to gather your family in a central room that has been optimized for harm minimization.
Final Say
Emergency survival relies not only on emergency supplies but also on being emotionally prepared for a disaster to occur and having a good knowledge of what to do in a dangerous situation.
