The United States Federal Emergency Management Agency states that 60% of Americans have not practiced for a disaster. Are you one of them? It may save your life and the lives of your loved one, if you do.
A couple of years ago, I was in Baltimore for a Chaplain’s conference when the building began to shake and the chandeliers began to sway. I heard things around me begin to rattle. I got scarred and ran towards the hall. We experienced an earthquake, I did not know what to do—I was unprepared.
I grew up on the East Coast and had never experienced an earthquake, but on this day, I did. My wife had just a week before assured our children that there were no earthquakes in Virginia, where we were living. She was roughly a hour away from the epicenter of the earthquake. We both were glad that the earthquake was not worse. But, we were not prepared for this event.
A disaster can happen anywhere at any time. I might add that within the same month as the earthquake, we had also experienced a hurricane. You simply never know how far you are away from a disaster. Practicing and discussing what you would do in a disaster will go far in preparing yourself and your family on what to do in the event of a disaster.
So, today—April 30, 2015—take some time to discuss with your family and checkout www.ready.gov to see ways in which you can be prepared when disaster strikes.