Intent:
Like all our articles on safety, this is not meant to scare - but prepare!
So how quickly can things go bad? sadly - very quickly! So, this quick article is just a reminder to be prepared!
Example:
Hurricane Beryl has been causing significant damage in the Carribean over the past week, while initially thought to be exhausting itself before hitting the mainland of the USA - it is heading towards Texas with a lot of potential for damage.
Detail:
Beryl was a Category 5 Hurricane, the highest category, meaning the wind speed was intense and you certainly did not want to be in the path.
It hit several islands in the area including Venezuela, Cayman Islands and Jamaica and has resulted in at least 7 deaths and damage to infrastructure throughout many areas.
Details will likely still emerge as response teams may still not have contacted all affected areas, while watching live streams during the impact on the Cayman Islands there were reports that all infrastructure was offline with communication being severed to entire communities.
It was predicted to lessen to a tropical storm, however it appears to have started hitting Mexico with the power of a Category 2 hurricane causing at least 'moderate' damage with more potential damage on the way.
So if people in the path of Beryl were counting on it being downgraded to a tropical storm and carried on with their lives, they were likely surprised by how quickly that situation changed and hopefully they managed to change gears and keep their homes and families safe.
Lesson:
The lesson to take away from this is that situations can change quickly, even the experts can get things wrong sometime and you may have a short amount of time to evacuate.
You may also find that you do not have time to evacuate and may have to wait a while for response teams to get to you, so you should always make sure you have enough food and water to survive for at least 3 days.
This also includes medications, dog food and baby supplies (if applicable).
You should also make sure you have enough warm clothing, waterproof if possible and a way to listen in to radio stations as needed.
It is also advisable to note down the Civil Defence channels for your area, whether this be a Facebook page, X page, Radio station or other way for the teams to alert you to danger - don't wait until it's happening to get familiar.
Other situations:
What other situations does this apply to? so many!
Earthquakes, Tsunami alerts, Wildfires, Chemical spills, flooding and more.
SecuriKiwi has articles on how to prepare for certain situations and is working on several reviews of supplies, equipment and tips to prepare for these - so keep checking back! these types of articles are always free here.
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