Are you prepared? These days, it's necessary.

Sep. 12, 2024

By Mary Wade Burnside

How are you liking these (mostly) cooler temperatures in the 70s and 80s that we’ve had for the past week? It’s nice after on-and-off 90-plus degrees temps and stifling humidity for the past two and a half months.
Extreme heat is a public health issue. It’s something that we take seriously here at Monongalia County Health Department, posting social media messages for people to drink plenty of water and avoid the heat when they can.
And, along with heavy rain, flooding and yes, even tornadoes, extreme weather is just one event that we should prepare for. You’ve probably watched news footage of floods, mudslides and other weather disasters in other parts of the country, including the most recent as Hurricane Francine lashes Louisiana. Or maybe you evacuated a beach town last month because of Hurricane Debby.
By the time September rolls around, it makes sense to spend time during National Preparedness Month considering how we all can make our lives safer.
After all, it’s not a matter of if, but when your power will go out or you will need to deal with some type of emergency.
And the topics above are only weather-related. Threats can come in many forms, some natural, some accidental and others created by “bad actors.”
MCHD’s Threat Preparedness works to keep the community safe from whatever might happen. Just last week, Threat Prep staffers helped organize a field hospital during the WVU football season opener at Milan Puskar Stadium to help keep emergency department visits down, and also walked around with radiation detectors to ward off any potential misbehavior.
Monongalia County Health Department also offers classes, including CPR, Stop the Bleed and naloxone administration, and the Quick Response Team that we coordinate will be participating in the Appalachia-wide Free Naloxone Day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26 in various locations around Monongalia County.
To schedule a training, email Joseph.L.Klass@wv.gov.
But there are other things you can do to be prepared for an emergency.
Ready.gov, FEMA’s preparedness site, encourages everyone to make a kit to be ready for any type of incident and also to make a family plan for a variety of circumstances. You can refer to the website to see a list of practical items to gather.
Other suggestions include:
• Learn how to receive emergency alerts.
• Make plans for both sheltering in place and also evacuation.
• Create a communication plan with your family in case disaster strikes when you are at different locations.
There are also financial preparations you can make to better help in the event of an emergency.
• Keep financial, critical household and medical information handy, including printed copies.
• Purchase homeowners or renters insurance, as well as health and life insurance if you don’t have them.
• Consider saving money in an emergency savings account that could be used in any crisis. Keep a small amount of cash at home in a safe place. It is important to have small bills on hand because ATMs and credit cards may not work during a disaster when you need to purchase necessary supplies, fuel or food. Remember, homeowners insurance typically doesn’t cover flooding, so if you believe this is a risk to your property, look into flood insurance.
Additionally, so many people are pet owners and you don’t want to forget about your furry (or scaly) family members. Microchipping dogs and cats will aid in them being reunited with you more easily.
You also might want to make a plan with your neighbors, including those with pets who can serve as an evacuation backup in case you are gone, and vice versa. But getting to know your neighbors is also a good idea in general, because you can help each other out and check on the elderly and others who might need assistance when an incident occurs, even a power outage.
Disasters aren’t fun to think about but being prepared makes them easier to handle when something happens.
Mary Wade Burnside is the public information officer at Monongalia County Health Department.