Being prepared for major incidents and emergencies such as flooding, large industrial accidents, power cuts or severe weather will help reduce the fear, anxiety, anger, cost and sense of loss that such events can bring. If you know what to do and have made simple precautions, then the impact on you and your loved ones can be drastically reduced.
Losing power to your home, or having to evacuate to a rest centre is something that most of us could easily cope with for a few hours, but what if you were without power for days? Or you couldn't go back to your home for a long time? Would you know what to have prepared such as water, food, clothing, medicine, spare batteries, etc?
If one of your family fell ill, would you know how to help them if the 999 service was not available? If you had family in an affected area, would you know who to call and how to call them? Do you have neighbours who would be vulnerable if such an event happened? Do you know how to prepare and protect your family rather than rely on the emergency services and local authorities?
A major incident affecting a wide area across North Yorkshire, the North East or even the United Kingdom would stretch the resources of the emergency services and local authorities to the point where they may not be able to get to you quickly. If you are prepared with even a few basic items and have a plan for helping yourself, your family and possibly your local community, then the impact of such an event on you would be greatly reduced.
For more information click here and visit the North Yorkshire Resilience Forum.
