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Environmental Kids Club

Knowledge is power!  Take this power and use it to understand the dangers that are out there.

In Peoria, extreme heat and Welcome to the City of Peoria, Arizona (especially lightning) are two of the major dangers to be prepared for.  Your home also has many dangers that could hurt you.

You can also find out what's happening right now in your state.
 

There are several things you can do to prepare for a disaster - and making a plan is one of them!
Here are some of the things you should do in order to get prepared:

1. Make a disaster preparedness kit. This kit will help you take care of yourself if an emergency or disaster happens. It is important to know what could happen so you put the right things in your preparedness kit.

2. Create a family disaster plan so your entire family knows what to do, where to meet, and how to react in an emergency.

3. There are many things you can do around the house to protect your home from disasters.

4. If you have pets, be sure not to leave them out. Having a plan for their safety will help you concentrate on yourself and your family when a disaster happens. Create a pet disaster plan.

5. Having an emergency or disaster happen close to you can be very scary.  It may help to find out how you may be feeling after a disaster happens.

When you are done reviewing all five steps, take this
quiz to see what you have learned.

There are so many things to remember to do to prepare for a disaster.
Checklists are a good way to help you remember everything. Use this checklist to help you to be sure you have done everything you can to be ready (it is probably a good idea to print this checklist out and mark things off as you do them - click here for a printable checklist).

q  Find out which disasters or emergencies could happen in your area (go to
        the Contact Information page to see where  you can call to find this out).

q  Do a home hazard hunt to find out what dangers could be in your home.
       You might want to practice with a home hazard hunt game first.

q  Find out how to properly prepare for each type of disaster.

q  Find out how you and your family would be warned of an emergency.

q  Create an emergency preparedness kit - be sure to have enough
        supplies in your kit for all of the people who live in your house.

q  Create an emergency escape route for your house - there should be two ways out in  
        case one of them is blocked.

q  If you are old enough, ask you parents how to quickly shut off the water, gas, and
        electricity to your home.  If you are not quite old enough to do this, ask your parents
        where these areas are so you can show an adult if you need to.

q  Know when and how to call 9-1-1 in an emergency.

q  Talk to your family about a meeting place so if there is an emergency in your home
        you know where to meet to be sure everyone is out safely.  Some good ideas are
        the water meter if it is in your front yard, across the street, by your mailbox.

q  Be sure that your smoke alarms are check each month (ask your parents to help you).

q  Do a exit drill in the home (also called EDITH) at least twice a year so that everyone
        in the family knows how to get out and what to do in case of a fire or other
        emergency.

q  Be sure everyone who is old enough in your house (including you...if you can read this,
        you are old enough) learn CPR and basic first aid.

q  Name one person who each person in your family can call in case you are separated
        (maybe you are at school and your parents are at work).  You can check in with
        this person to let them know you are okay, where you are, and check on your other
        family members.

q  Have a list of emergency telephone numbers that each person in your family
        keeps. This list should include your mom and dad's work and cell phone, school,
        and your designated emergency person mentioned above.

q  Go through your checklist again every year to be sure that your emergency plan
        is still in good shape.   

    
Visit the FEMA Library to get lots of cool stuff to help you learn about emergencies.
The library has maps, videos, pictures, more computer links, and books!

If you have been following the steps to preparedness, you should already have a plan, including a disaster preparedness kit. You should have also filled out the Emergency Preparedness Checklist.

Now it is time to practice your plan and see if it works - you should actually do this about every six months.  Here are some simple steps to practice and maintain your plan:

1. Conduct fire drills and emergency evacuations about every six months. Be sure to change the location of the fire and change it each time so you and your family can practice different types of emergencies. Doing this will help to make sure that everyone knows what to do no matter what happens.

2. Check your emergency preparedness kit to be sure that the disaster supplies are still all there.  Also check the food and water to be sure that the expiration date is not getting too close.  If it is, ask you parents to buy new supplies to put in the kit.  As long as the date is still good, you can still eat and drink the food and water safely.

3. After your drills, if you notice something doesn't work good - change the plan to fix what is wrong.  This is how you will "maintain" your plan.  Remember, that once the plan is changed or fixed, it is a good idea to have a drill based on the new plan to be sure everyone knows what has changed and what to do.

4. Quiz your family every six months on something different to be sure that they know about different emergencies and what to do.  There are different quizzes throughout this site that you can use.  You can also do an Internet search on "Disaster Preparedness Quiz" or "Emergency Preparedness Quiz."

5. If you are a Disaster Action Kid, check out the FEMA for Kids site to learn new tricks that you can use to get even better prepared than you are now. If you are not a Disaster Action Kid, become one!  Click the picture below to find out how.

• Make sure you drink lots of water, not only while you are playing or working in the heat, but before you go out and after you come in.

• Know how heat makes you sick, and how to know when the heat makes you sick. This type of sickness is called heat-related illness.

• Find out about heat-related illness from the Red Cross.

• Take the Extreme Heat Quiz to find out how much you know about the heat and how to stay safe.

• Find out more information on the Weather Preparedness page.

• Have fun coloring, while you learn about lightning from Owlie Skywarn or learn about floods from Owlie Skywarn.

• Learn how thunderstorm's happen and can lead to more dangerous things such as tornadoes. This brochure has a section on the Life Cycle of a Thunderstorm and some other good stuff.

• Want to do an experiment?  Try making some lightening!

• Read some weather stories, play a game, and learn about basic weather safety at the Striking Images Kids Page.

• Thinking about our homes catching on fire is a scary and sad thought.  But being prepared can save your life! Find out all about fire safety.

• Sparky can also help you learn how to stay safe in case of a fire.

• Find out general safety stuff from Captain Kiddie.  There are things here for all ages!

• We use lots of stuff around our houses that may cause injuries or illnesses.  Find out about some of them from Kidd (no, he is not the same as Captain Kiddie).

• Let Herman show you some good stuff on how to be prepared in all types of emergencies!