Great Disaster Preparedness Tips Provided to SSA

On Tuesday, February 26, during Stroke Support Association’s free weekly support groups for stroke survivors and caregivers in the Long Beach area, Kathy Dollarhide and her husband Chief Dave Dollarhide gave a disaster preparedness presentation.

Kathy is the Director of the Disaster Resource Center at Dignity Health St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach. Dave is the Battalion Chief of the Ft. Irwin Fire Department.

The presentation covered how to prepare for an emergency, most notably earthquakes and fires. In addition to learning how to make an inexpensive earthquake kit, SSA members heard many useful tips, including:

• Every six months, when changing the clock forward or back, also change out the batteries in your smoke alarms and replace your supply of emergency water with fresh water.
• Keep a working flashlight in every bedside table and sturdy shoes by the bed.
• Get your prescriptions refilled at the first allowable date, so that over time, you will accumulate enough extra pills to take you through an emergency.
• Make sure all family members, whether living at home or not, use the same out-of-state emergency contact. After an earthquake, phone service to others in the area may fail when a long-distance call can still go through.
• In an earthquake: Stop, drop, and hold on. Do not stand in door jambs.
• Wherever you are, know your emergency exits and where the fire extinguisher is stored.
• Make sure you have enough water, canned food that can be eaten cold, hygiene products, prescriptions, and pet food to last a few days without power or ability to go to the store. “Think of your house after an earthquake as a wilderness. You have to survive in the wilderness,” Kathy said.

The Dollarhides gave out emergency flashlights, first-aid kids, and a brochure entitled Guide to Disaster and Earthquake Preparedness to each member of SSA.

Many thanks to Kathy and Dave from the members of SSA’s support group.

Categorized in: SSA News