Planning for an Emergency

Imagine this: 

• You wake up in the middle of the night and the floor beneath your bed is shaking violently and you can hear things falling elsewhere in the house... What do you do?

• You and your spouse are at work, the children are at school, and a major earthquake hits. How do you confirm everyone is safe and reunite?

• A series of severe storms are causing massive regional flooding and Permanente Creek is expected to overflow in the next twelve hours causing significant flooding in the neighborhood, despite the flood controls at McKelvey Park. What can you do to prepare? 

• A wildfire has broken out in the Los Altos Hills and winds are causing it to spread quickly towards Mountain View. The county has issued an alert for the area to be prepared to evacuate. How soon should you leave?

• There is a major power outage in the region and most of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties are without power.  It could be a week, or longer, before you have power again. Can you manage at home, or do you need to go elsewhere that still has power?

For any of these, and other possible scenarios, having a plan in place will make it easier to respond in the moment. At a minimum, a plan should include having a location outside of the home where household members can meet up, having a contact person outside of the region, and having an evacuation plan.  Additional considerations such as very young children, pets, and people with disabilities or complex medical needs, will require additional planning.