Like most natural disasters, an earthquake can hit at any time and with very little warning. While most earthquakes likely won’t cause much damage to you, your home, or the surrounding area, it’s always wise to be ready for a major earthquake to take place, especially if you live in a tectonically active area or have people in your home that you’re responsible for.
To help you in getting ready for this type of scenario, here are three tips for preparing your home and family for an earthquake.
Double-Check Your Home’s Structure
If an earthquake strikes, you’ll want to make sure that your home is fit to withstand the shaking or rolling as well as it possibly can. To do this, your home will have to have a solid foundation and structure.
To know if your home is in need of some upgrades in this area, the Red Cross recommends that you have a professional come to your home to do an inspection. During this time, you should ask if your home is securely anchored to the foundation and if the foundation needs any maintenance done in order to make it more stable. In addition to checking out the foundation and the structure of your home, you can also ask this professional to check out other structures that are attached to your home, like porches, awnings, garages and more.
Keep The Right Supplies On-Hand
Ideally, any earthquake you’re in won’t cause any damage to your property or the utilities coming to and from your home. But to be on the safe side, it’s wise to have some precautionary supplies on-hand just in case you have some disruptions to your typical life and routine as a result of an earthquake.
According to Steven John, a contributor to Business Insider, some of the supplies that you’ll want to always have at your home include food and water for at least two or three days, flashlights and batteries, a fire extinguisher, a first aid kit and any other necessities that you might need without having the ability to run to the store. With these supplies, you should be able to face anything that an earthquake can throw at you.
Talk With Your Family Regularly
One of the most important things to do in your preparation for an earthquake is to have a plan that you and your family will follow and ensure that everyone knows that plan backwards and forwards.
As part of these plans, SafeWise.com recommends that you outline how you’ll communicate with each other, where the safest locations in each room are, how to best protect their bodies from falling objects, and where to meet if you are to get separated. Especially if you have little kids, you’ll want to go over this information routinely so they don’t forget it.
To help you and your family have the best chance of staying safe during and after an earthquake, consider using the tips mentioned above as you prepare for such an event.
