Emergencies Occur When Least Expected - Here Are Some Resources to Help You Prepare

The Montgomery County website for seniors has excellent information, including how to put together an emergency kit. https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/OEMHS/plan/Seniors/Seniors.html

Brochure on Senior Preparedness from Montgomery County MD

The information below is compiled from the Red Cross, FEMA and the CDC.

First you need a preparedness plan:

  1. Make arrangements, prior to an emergency, for your support network to immediately check on you after a disaster and, if needed, offer assistance.
  2. Exchange important keys.
  3. Show them where you keep emergency supplies.
  4. Share copies of your relevant emergency documents, evacuation plans and emergency health information card.
  5. If power is out and your land-line does not work, remember that your cell phone might work (and it can be charged in your car).
  6. You and your personal support network should always notify each other when you are going out of town and when you will return.
  7. The relationship should be mutual. You have a lot to contribute! Learn about each other’s needs and how to help each other in an emergency. You might take responsibility for food supplies and preparation, organizing neighborhood watch meetings and interpreting, among other things.
  8. Assemble an emergency kit:
    Essentials

    • Battery-operated radio
    • Flashlight and extra batteries (Do not include candles, which cause more fires after a disaster than anything else)
    • Make sure your cell phone is fully charged. If the power goes out, it will let you keep in touch with others. If you have a car charger, remember that you can charge it in your car.
    • Water – 3 gallons/person, minimum, in a food-grade, plastic container. Put several containers of water in our freezer. If there is no power, you can move them to the fridge to help keep food cold. Additional water for sanitation
    • Food. Be sure to have some non-perishable food.
    • Change of clothes and shoes
    • Non-prescription and first aid items

    Important Family Documents

    • Important telephone numbers
    • Record of bank account numbers
    • Family records (birth, marriage, death certificates)
    • Inventory of valuable household goods
    • Copy of will, insurance policies, contracts, deeds, stocks and bonds
    • Record of credit card account numbers and companies
    • Copy of passports, social security cards, immunization records

    Medical Needs

    • Prescription drugs including insulin
    • Denture needs
    • Extra eye glasses
    • Contact lenses and supplies
    • Heart and high blood pressure medication

    Entertainment – reading material, paper and pen 


If you would like a NAN volunteer to contact you by phone or e-mail or make sure you are ok or to give you a hand with something, please contact your Block Coordinator.