In Time of Emergency - United States. Office of Civil Defense (best reads txt) 📗

heat for cooking; medicines needed by family members, and a first aid kit; blankets or sleeping bags; flashlights or lanterns; a battery-powered radio; and perhaps a covered container to use as an emergency toilet. In addition, an automobile in good operating condition with an ample supply of gasoline may be necessary in case you have to leave your home.

In those parts of the country subject to hurricanes or floods, it is also wise to keep on hand certain emergency materials you may need to protect your home from wind and water--such as plywood sheeting or lumber to board up your windows and doors, and plastic sheeting or tarpaulins to protect furniture and appliances.

Fire Protection and Fire Fighting

Fires are a special hazard in a time of disaster. They may start more readily, and the help of the fire department may not be available quickly. Therefore, it is essential that you:

1. Follow the fire prevention rules given on page 52, and be especially careful not to start fires.

2. Know how to put out small fires yourself. (See pages 52-54.)

3. Have on hand simple tools and equipment needed for fire fighting. (See page 43.)

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After a Natural Disaster

Use extreme caution in entering or working in buildings that may have been damaged or weakened by the disaster, as they may collapse without warning. Also, there may be gas leaks or electrical short circuits.

Don't bring lanterns, torches or lighted cigarettes into buildings that have been flooded or otherwise damaged by a natural disaster, since there may be leaking gas lines or flammable material present.

Stay away from fallen or damaged electric wires, which may still be dangerous.

Check for leaking gas pipes in your home. Do this by smell only-- don't use matches or candles. If you smell gas, do this: (1) Open all windows and doors, (2) Turn off the main gas valve at the meter, (3) Leave the house immediately, (4) Notify the gas company or the police or fire department, (5) Don't re-enter the house until you are told it is safe to do so.

If any of your electrical appliances are wet, first turn off the main power switch in your house, then unplug the wet appliance, dry it out, reconnect it, and finally, turn on the main power switch. (Caution: Don't do any of these things while you are wet or standing in water.) If fuses blow when the electric power is restored, turn off the main power switch again and then inspect for short circuits in your home wiring, appliances and equipment.

Check your food and water supplies before using them. Foods that require refrigeration may be spoiled if electric power has been off for some time. Also, don't eat food that has come in contact with flood waters. Be sure to follow the instructions of local authorities concerning the use of food and water supplies.

If needed, get food, clothing, medical care or shelter at Red Cross stations or from local government authorities.

Stay away from disaster areas. Sightseeing could interfere with first aid or rescue work, and may be dangerous as well.

Don't drive unless necessary, and drive with caution. Watch for hazards to yourself and others, and report them to local authorities.

Write, telegraph or telephone your relatives, after the emergency is over, so they will know you are safe. Otherwise local authorities may waste time locating you--or if you have evacuated to a safer location, they may not be able to find you. (However, do not tie up the phone lines if they are still needed for official emergency calls.)

Do not pass on rumors or exaggerated reports of damage.

Follow the advice and instructions of your local government on ways to help yourself and your community recover from the emergency.

Chapter 2 FLOODS AND HURRICANES

In addition to the general guidance in Chapter 1 of this section, there are certain emergency actions particularly associated with major floods, hurricanes, and storm tides or surges. These types of disasters usually are preceded by extended periods of warning. People living in areas likely to be most severely affected often are warned to move to safer locations.

Evacuation

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If you are warned to evacuate your home and move to another location temporarily, there are certain things to remember and do. Here are the most important ones:

• FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS AND ADVICE OF YOUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT. If you are told to evacuate, do so promptly. If you are instructed to move to a certain location, go there--don't go anywhere else. If certain travel routes are specified or recommended, use those routes rather than trying to find short cuts of your own. (It will help if you have previously become familiar with the routes likely to be used.) If you are told to shut off your water, gas or electric service before leaving home, do so. Also find out on the radio where emergency housing and mass feeding stations are located, in case you need to use them.

• SECURE YOUR HOME BEFORE LEAVING. If you have time, and if you have not received other instructions from your local government, you should take the following actions before leaving your home:

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--Bring outside possessions inside the house, or tie them down securely. This includes outdoor furniture, garbage cans, garden tools, signs, and other movable objects that might be blown or washed away.

--Board up your windows so they won't be broken by high winds, water, flying objects or debris.

--If flooding is likely, move furniture and other movable objects to the upper floor of your house. Disconnect any electrical appliances or equipment that cannot be moved--but don't touch them if you are wet or are standing in water.

--Do not stack sandbags around the outside walls of your house to keep flood waters out of your basement. Water seeping downward through the earth (either beyond the sandbags or over them) may collect around the basement walls and under the floor, creating pressure that could damage the walls or else raise the entire basement and cause it to "float" out of the ground. In most cases it is better to permit the flood waters to flow freely into the basement (or flood the basement yourself with clean water, if you feel sure it will be flooded anyway). This will equalize the water pressure on the inside and outside of the basement walls and floor, and thus avoid structural damage to the foundation and the house.

--Lock house doors and windows. Park your car in the garage or driveway, close the windows, and lock it (unless you are driving to your new temporary location).

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• TRAVEL WITH CARE. If your local government is arranging transportation for you, precautions will be taken for your safety. But if you are walking or driving your own car to another location, keep in mind these things:

--Leave early enough so as not to be marooned by flooded roads, fallen trees, and wires.

--Make sure you have enough gasoline in your car.

--Follow recommended routes.

--As you travel, keep listening to the radio for additional information and instructions from your local government.

--Watch for washed-out or undermined roadways, earth slides, broken sewer or water mains, loose or downed electric wires, and falling or fallen objects.

--Watch out for areas where rivers or streams may flood suddenly.

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--Don't try to cross a stream or a pool of water unless you are certain that the water will not be above your knees (or above the middle of your car's wheels) all the way across. Sometimes the water will hide a bridge or a part of the road that has been washed out. If you decide it is safe to drive across it, put your car in low gear and drive very slowly, to avoid splashing water into your engine and causing it to stop. Also, remember that your brakes may not work well after the wheels of your car have been in deep water. Try them out a few times when you reach the other side.

During a Hurricane

--If your house is on high ground and you haven't been instructed to evacuate, stay indoors. Don't try to travel, since you will be in danger from flying debris, flooded roads, and downed wires.

--Keep listening to your radio or television set for further information and advice. If the center or "eye" of the hurricane passes directly over you, there will be a temporary lull in the wind, lasting from a few minutes to perhaps a half-hour or more. Stay in a safe place during this lull. The wind will return--perhaps with even greater force--from the opposite direction.

Special Advice on Flash Floods

In many areas, unusually heavy rains may cause quick or "flash" floods. Small creeks, gullies, dry streambeds, ravines, culverts or even low-lying grounds frequently flood very quickly and endanger people, sometimes before any warning can be given.

In a period of heavy rains, be aware of this hazard and be prepared to protect yourself against it. If you see any possibility of a flash flood occurring where you are, move immediately to a safer location (don't wait for instructions to move), and then notify your local authorities of the danger, so other people can be warned.

Chapter 3 TORNADOES

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• When a tornado watch (forecast) is announced, this means that tornadoes are expected in or near your area. Keep your radio or television set tuned to a local station for information and advice from your local government or the Weather Bureau. Also, keep watching the sky, especially to the south and southwest. (When a tornado watch is announced during the approach of a hurricane, however, keep watching the sky to the east.) If you see any revolving, funnel-shaped clouds, report them by telephone immediately to your local police department, sheriff's office or Weather Bureau office. But do not use the phone to get information and advice--depend on radio or TV.

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• When a tornado warning is issued, take shelter immediately. The warning means that a tornado has actually been sighted, and this (or other tornadoes) may strike in your vicinity. You must take action to protect yourself from being blown away, struck by falling objects, or injured by flying debris. Your best protection is an underground shelter or cave, or a substantial steel-framed or reinforced-concrete building. But if none of these is available, there are other places where you can take refuge:

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--If you are at home, go to your underground storm cellar or your basement fallout shelter, if you have one. If not, go to a corner of your home basement and take cover under a sturdy workbench or table (but not underneath heavy appliances on the floor above). If your home has no basement, take cover under heavy furniture on the ground floor in the center part of the house, or in a small room on the ground floor that is away from outside walls and windows. (As a last resort, go outside to a nearby ditch, excavation, culvert or ravine.) Doors and windows on the sides of your house away from, the tornado may be left open to help reduce damage to the building, but stay away from them to avoid flying debris. Do not remain in a trailer or mobile home if a tornado is approaching; take cover elsewhere.

--If you are at work in an office building, go to the basement or to an inner hallway on a lower floor. In a factory, go to a shelter area, or to the basement if there is one.

--If you are outside in open country, drive away from the tornado's path, at a right angle to it. If there isn't