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Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Making an emergency plan for spring weather

A pedestrian walkway closed due to flooding during a massive release of water into the Arkansas River from the Keystone Dam, May 20, 2019

Perhaps the single most important factor in minimizing the risk of injury or death from a largescale weather disaster involves preparation.

While it’s clearly impossible to predict with any accuracy when such an event might occur in the future, for those who live in Oklahoma, the likelihood that a violent storm or a flood will impact one’s life is fairly high.

Jennifer Pipa is Vice President of Disaster Response for the American Red Cross.

“There’s a feeling of being secure and somewhat in control in a disaster, even when the unknown is present, if you’ve made some decisions ahead of time, and you’ve prepared your family,” Pipa said Wednesday.

She tells KRMG she has a three-tiered approach to preparing for emergencies.

1. Create an evacuation plan

Evacuations can occur with little warning. Pipa says the plan should include not only how you leave the home, and what you take with you, but how you leave the neighborhood or your community. Have a rally point and a form of communication planned in advance.

2. Have an emergency kit

Without going into great detail, this kit should include water and non-perishable food to last at least a few days; a battery-powered (or hand crank) radio; flashlight and spare batteries; plastic tarp and duct tape for emergency shelter; a couple basic tools (wrench, hammer); a manual can opener; a map of the area. (For a much more detailed list, visit the Ready.gov website.)

3. Know your local emergency officials and how they communicate

It’s important, Pipa says, to know how the emergency officials in your area communicate and share information. “Information is power during a disaster,” Pipa told KRMG. “You want to make sure that you are really looped into that network, so that you and your family are making the best, most informed decisions about when to evacuate - and more importantly, listening to the emergency officials about when it’s safe to return.”


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