In recent days, Canterbury has experienced an extreme flooding event that has damaged bridges, disrupted transport links, and affected livelihoods.

While we know just how unpredictable Mother Nature can be, many of us still aren’t as prepared as we should be if such events should happen a little closer to home. In fact, the “it’ll never happen to me” mentality is still alive and well.

The reality is, severe weather events and natural disasters in our towns and cities can and likely will happen in our lifetime. The more prepared we are, the stronger and more confident we can be to make it through. Here are just a few of the things that can be worth doing to keep yourself and your property safe.

 

Collect Emergency Supplies

If the stockpiling toilet paper saga of 2020 taught us anything, it’s that not everyone is prepared for an event that sees them unable to get to the supermarket. Now, before you need to, start collecting emergency supplies.

Think of things that will be helpful if you’re without access to a supermarket, electricity, water, or medical care for at least three days. Fill your kit with canned goods, a flashlight, batteries, blankets, matches, bottled water, medical supplies, pet supplies, and a radio. Make sure they are stored in something portable you can remove from your house in a hurry if you need to.

 

Watch the Weather

If it’s not typically part of your daily ritual to check a weather app or the newspaper’s weather page, get into the habit of doing so. Listen to weather reports and check websites that offer weather updates so that you can be aware of any adverse weather conditions that could be headed your way.

 

Contact the Power Company

If the power has gone out, or you expect it to, find out from your power company what to do if there is an after-hours emergency. Write the information down and store it with your emergency supplies.

Fortunately, many power providers offer phone apps that allow you to report faults and problems while keeping up with outages in your area.  

After contacting the power company, make a plan of attack with your family on how you would all communicate if there is a power outage or cellphone reception loss. This might include meeting at a central point.

 

Check Your Insurance Coverage

The last thing you want to do is be checking your insurance policy after a natural disaster to find out if you have coverage. Be proactive and read through your policy’s fine print to find out what you can expect.

If you’re unsure about any part of the policy, phone your provider to find out more. You may also like to consider adjusting your policy if some time has passed since you last reviewed it.

 

Store Your Important Possessions Carefully

Homes, building materials, and possessions are replaceable. What is harder to replace and sometimes impossible are important things like birth certificates, titles, passports, family heirlooms, and photo albums.

Even if you never dreamed in a million years that a natural disaster would affect your property, they can. Store your important possessions in waterproof containers on high shelves that floodwaters couldn’t affect. If you’re worried about fire, consider a fireproof safe.

 

Create An Evacuation Plan

A plan is helpful in many situations, such as an asbestos management plan for managing asbestos in commercial buildings. In the event of an emergency like flooding, it’s crucial to have a plan for your family.

Identify your town or city’s various evacuation routes, and include these into a plan for your family and pets. Create a detailed, step-by-step guide that outlines what you will do in an emergency and where you will go.

 

Charge All Your Devices

We all understand the importance of being able to connect with the outside world. It’s how we stay in touch with our loved ones and get helpful information from businesses and organisations. Make sure that before severe weather hits – like storms and flooding – you charge as many devices as possible. 

Haul your power banks out of storage to charge them, and make sure your laptops, tablets, and phones have plenty of battery power, as well.

 

Consider Alternative Energy Sources

Being without power for hours or days is many people’s idea of a nightmare. Sometimes, we don’t know how much we rely on it until we don’t have it. Consider investing in alternative forms of electricity for emergencies.  

Buy solar panels that you can connect to inverters, fuel generators, and gas cookers for preparing the family meal. Even having a collection of power banks can ensure you’ve got a charged phone for as long as possible.

 

Stay Safe, Aotearoa

We’ve seen an awful lot of flooding, fires, and earthquakes up and down the country. We can never know when these events will happen, but we can prepare for them if they do. The more planning you do now, the more peace of mind you can have.