Make A Plan -- Haga un Plan

Planning ahead will help you have the best possible response to disaster.

Talk.
Discuss with your family the disasters that can happen where you live. Establish responsibilities for each member of your household and plan to work together as a team. Designate alternates in case someone is absent. If a family member is in the military, also plan for how you would respond if they are deployed. Include the local military base resources that may be available.   Talk with your family about disasters that can happen where you live. Find out what types of disasters occur in your area.   Habla con tu familia sobre los desastres que pueden occurrir donde tu vives. Informate sobre que tipos de desastres ocurren en tu area.  

What Do You Need To Know Before a Disaster? 
    Que necesitas saber antes de un desastre?

What Types of Disasters Do You Need to Prepare For?
    Para que tipos de desastre te necesitas preparar?                 

Choose two places to meet after a disaster:

• Right outside your home, in case of a sudden emergency, such as a fire.  
• Outside your neighborhood, in case you cannot return home or are asked to evacuate your neighborhood.  

After determining your meeting places, you should also:

• Determine the best escape routes from your home. Find two ways out of each room. Also, determine the best two escape routes out of your neighborhood/community. Ask an out-of-town friend to be your "family contact".
• After a disaster, it's often easier to call long distance. Other family members should call this person and tell them where they are. Everyone must know your contact's phone number.
• Find out how to care for your pets. Many shelters do not allow them because of health regulations.
• Download a Family Disaster Plan (PDF)
• In Spanish, Su plan para el hogar en caso de desastres(pdf)

Learn.
Each adult inyour household should learn how and when to turn off utilities such as electricity, water and gas. Ask your local fire department to show you how to use a fire extinguisher.Tell everyone in the household where emergency information and supplies are kept. Make copies of the information for everyone to carry with them. Keep the information updated.

Practice.
Practice evacuating your home twice a year. Drive your planned evacuation route and plot alternate routes on a map in case main roads are impassable or gridlocked.Include your pets. If you must evacuate, take your animals with you. If it is not safe for you to remain, it is not safe for them.

Support your community.
Support your community plans by volunteering in the community and by giving blood. More than one million people in the U.S. serve their communities. They come from all walks of life and backgrounds and are of all ages. Red Cross volunteers help people in emergencies. They translate for non-English speakers so that every-one can receive Red Cross services, teach first aid classes and organize blood drives. They connect members of the armed forces stationed overseas with their families during major family events.These vital community services are made possibleby people like you. Contact the Greater Houston Area Red Cross and ask how you can help.