Be Disaster Aware
Disasters can strike at any time, and the need to be prepared is vital to ensure the safety of all (you, your family, patients and colleagues). September is National Preparedness Month, and preparedness is a shared responsibility; it takes a whole community. Beacon Health System wants to provide the tools to help you prepare for any emergency and ensure your family’s safety.
1. Create a family emergency plan.
Your family may not be together when an emergency happens, so it is important to plan in advance: how you will contact one another; how you will get back together; and what you will do in different situations. You can download a family emergency plan template by visiting ready.gov.
2. Put together an emergency supply kit.
You may need to survive on your own after an emergency. This means having your own food, water and other supplies in sufficient quantity to last for at least three days. To find a complete checklist of the supplies your household may need in an emergency, visit ready.gov.
3. Know the emergencies that can happen and what to do.
Learn about the hazards that may strike our community, the risks you face from these hazards and our community’s plans for warning and evacuation. Memorial Hospital and the St. Joseph County community have identified the following top emergency risks for our area:
- Violence/Disturbances
- Information System Failures/Cyber Security
- Winter Storm/Blizzard
- Mass Casualty Incidents
- Severe Weather/Tornado
- Hazardous Material Exposure
- Flooding
- Everyone should make sure they are familiar with emergency plans at home, work and school.
4. Get involved in emergency preparedness.
A key part in Beacon’s preparedness efforts are disaster training and exercises with our community. Memorial Hospital will be participating in a community wide disaster exercise on Sept. 17. Free online training for all different types of emergencies are available a training.fema.gov.
