WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Unlike hurricanes and tornados, earthquakes strike without warning.
So FEMA says the time to plan is now.
“When it’s happening, that’s not the time to think about ‘oh I really need this,’” Linda Mastandrea with FEMA said.
Mastandrea urges everyone to make a supply kit ahead of time with water, food, phone chargers and flashlights. For those with special needs, it’s important to remember medicine, food or tools you may need in the aftermath of a quake.
“If I’m a wheelchair user, maybe I need a portable air compressor to make sure I keep air in my tires, or spare tires, or tubes,” she said.
And what about your pets?
“You need to be thinking about food and water for them and how do I keep them safe, how do I keep them calm,” Mastandrea said.
Plan, practice and prepare. FEMA says those three words will help you if you are experiencing an earthquake. Along with drop, cover and hold on.
“Find the heaviest piece of furniture like a big sturdy desk or workbench like my dad used to have and get underneath that and hang on,” she said.
And communication is key.
“You may have somebody at work, somebody in school, somebody at home so you need to know how to get a hold of each other,” Mastandrea said.
FEMA says practicing these simple preps could help save a life.
“Don’t think, ‘it can’t happen to me,’ because it can happen to anyone of us at any time.”
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