In town or on the farm, emergencies can happen anywhere and any time.
On April 29, County of Stettler Reeve Larry Clarke and Town of Stettler Coun. Wayne Smith signed a joint proclamation for Emergency Preparedness Week 2022, which runs from May 1 to 7.
The theme of Emergency Preparedness Week 2022 is “Be Ready for Anything,” and in that vein the County of Stettler has released both general emergency preparedness checklists and agricultural checklists to help community members be prepared in an emergency.
For the general checklist, the county recommends having enough food, water, and medication to last at least 72 hours because that could be the minimum amount of time for help to arrive in rural areas.
A radio, either crank, battery, or solar operated, is also important as the power grid could go down.
Copies of your insurance, identification, health card, passport and birth certificate for each member of the family are also important, either digitally on USB drive or physically on printed copies.
Flashlights, warm clothing, cash in small bills, first aid kits and toiletries round out the list of items recommended by the county for an emergency preparedness kit.
However, one cannot forget your furry family members!
Making sure you have a leash or carrier for your pet that is ready to go, a container for water, a supply of food for them and a blanket will help your furry companion to ride out the emergency with you.
On the farm, the County of Stettler has three steps for agricultural preparedness.
First, if possible, plan to shelter in place, as “your livestock may be better off out in a safe pasture than being evacuated.”
If livestock must be evacuated to a centralized area like a fair grounds, the county recommends having your animals appropriately identified, do what you can to minimize contact with animals from other different premises, attempt to protect feed and water from wild animals and, finally, confirm the health and vaccination status of animals which must be co-mingled.
The second step is to create an emergency plan, and review, test and update the plan, emergency supplies and information regularly.
Third, prepare a farm emergency kit.
In the kit, the county recommends keeping a list of all animals, including locations and vaccination status, supplies to temporarily mark animals, such as plastic neckbands and permanent markers, putting together a basic first aid kit, and food, water and other emergency supplies for your family on the farm.
The list is not exhaustive, and more information can be found at the County of Stettler website, www.stettlercounty.ca, or at the Government of Canada “Get Prepared” website, www.getprepared.gc.ca.