San Diego, are you ready for our next natural disaster?
These days it seems like water main breaks are a weekly occurrence around San Diego (with San Marcos being the latest neighborhood to take a hit). Meanwhile, experts predict that Southern California is due for “the big one”, and record dry conditions all but guarantee that more wildfires are in our future. We don’t mean to create unnecessary panic, but as plumbers who help repair our community’s homes, we feel an obligation to promote safety awareness. For all of our city’s assets (the beautiful weather, the beaches, the friendly people), living here also makes us susceptible to powerful natural disasters.
To stay safe at all times, read these tips that can get you through almost any natural disaster.
Make a plan
Planning ahead is the best weapon in fighting the fallout from an emergency. Whether we’re faced with a major earthquake, storm floods, or similar event, you can dramatically increase your chance of safety and survival if you make a plan ahead of time. The ideal thing to do is to make a list of potential events, and outline reactions around them. For instance, in case you have to evacuate due to a wildfire, know where you’re going to store your outdoor furniture to prevent it from burning.
Share it with your family
Once you’ve figured out basic emergency plans, disseminate them to your family. Make sure everyone knows what to do for each event, and follow up often. Once you’ve made a list of different disasters with different instructions, it can be easily to forget or confuse the steps. Go over the details with your family once a month, or whatever time frame works for you.
Know important phone numbers
Obviously, everyone in the family should be in touch with each other in case you’re hit with a flood, fire, etc. But did you know that safety experts suggest that you contact not just your family, but utility companies and contractors as well? For instance, if a water main breaks in your neighborhood, you’ll want to call the most skilled plumber in San Marcos to test your tap water. Boyd Rogers can run quality assurance tests and check for water damage. Whether you attend CSUSM or live near San Marcos Growers, we’ll make sure your plumbing and home recover from any flood or natural disaster.
Create an emergency kit
Emergency kits are essential for any disastrous event. Earthquakes, in particular, require the use of a well-planned kit. Whether it’s a first-aid box, designated drawer, or other container that’s easy to reach, make sure you keep your safety items handy. Experts recommend that all kits should include things like bandages (of varying sizes), rubbing alcohol, gauze, scissors, aspirin – basically anything that will help alleviate injury or pain should people hurt themselves during the shaking.
Additionally you should keep flashlights and extra batteries handy. In a big quake, the electricity may go out for days. While you can probably make due without appliances (keeping canned food on hand is also a good idea), you’ll need to see well in order to move around.
