A Big THANKS to our DAT Volunteers!

Lightning Safety Awareness Week

In the United States, there are an estimated 25 million lightning flashes each year. During the past 30 years, lightning killed an average of 62 people per year. The highest death rates from lightning in the United States are in Florida, which is known as the lightning capital of the country!! Yet because lightning usually claims only one or two victims at a time and does not cause mass destruction of property, it is underrated as a risk.

• Watch for Developing Thunderstorms: Thunderstorms are most likely to develop on spring or summer days but can occur year round. As the sun heats the air, pockets of warmer air start to rise and cumulus clouds form. Continued heating can cause these clouds to grow vertically into towering cumulus clouds, often the first sign of a developing thunderstorm.
• An Approaching Thunderstorm: When to Seek Safe Shelter: Lightning can strike as far as 10 miles from area where it is raining. That’s about the distance you can hear thunder. If you can hear thunder, you are within striking distance. Seek safe shelter immediately.
• Outdoor Activities: Minimize the Risk of Being Struck: Most lightning deaths and injuries occur in the summer. Where organized outdoor sports activities take place, coaches, camp counselors and other adults must stop activities at the first roar of thunder to ensure everyone time to get a large building or enclosed vehicle. Leaders of outdoors events should have a written plan that all staff are aware of and enforce.
• Indoor Activities: Things to Avoid: Inside building, stay off corded phones, computers and other electrical equipment that put you in direct contact with electricity. Stay away from pools, indoor or outdoor, tubs, showers and other plumbing. Buy surge suppressors for key equipment. Install ground fault protectors on circuits near water or outdoors. When inside, wait 30 minutes after the last strike, before going out again.
• Helping a Lightning Strike Victim: If a person is struck by lightning, call 911 and get medical care immediately. Cardiac arrest and irregularities, burns, and nerve damage are common in cases where people are struck by lightning. However, with proper treatment, including CPR if necessary, most victims survive a lightning strike. You are in no danger helping a lightning victim. The charge will not affect you.
• Summary: Lightning is dangerous. With common sense, you can greatly increase your safety and the safety of those you are with. At the first clap of thunder, go a large building or fully enclosed vehicle and wait 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder before you to back outside.

When Thunder Roars, Go Indoors!

What is the American Red Cross Safe and Well Website?

The American Red Cross Safe and Well Website, accessible via www.redcross.org, is an internet-based tool that families can integrate into their family communications plan and also one that the Red Cross will use to help disaster victims communicate from inside the disaster-affected areas to loved ones outside. People within a disaster area can register themselves as “safe and well” by selecting and posting standard messages for friends and family that indicate they are safe and well at a shelter, home or hotel, and will make contact when they are able. Concerned family members who know the person’s phone number (home, cell or work) or a complete home address can search for the messages posted by those who self-register.

The Safe and Well Website complies with all privacy and child protection laws. Because of these privacy concerns, no location information is publicly displayed on this website. The results of a successful search only display a loved one’s first name, last name, an as of date, and the Safe and Well messages they posted.

Here are some additional items to include in presentations to promote preparedness before disaster strikes:

Family Communications Plan

• Prepare a list of multiple contacts, including family and friends, that are unlikely to be affected by the same disaster you are experiencing
• Make sure that the list of contacts includes the contact’s phone numbers, email, and address
• Develop several options for re-establishing communication during times of emergency (phone contact with a designated out-of-state friend, email distribution list for family members, use of the Safe and Well Website, etc.)
• Initiate your plan ahead of forecasted event; contact family and loved ones if you move or evacuate before the disaster strikes.

For more information on how you and your family can develope a Family Disaster Plan, please visit www.tallyredcross.org or call our Chapter at (850) 878-6080.

Water Safety Tips for the Summer

Teaching America to Swim:  Though people have probably been swimming and almost as long as they have been on earth, swimming for fun is a relatively new idea.  The first municipal pool in the United States was built in 1887, at a time when more and more Americans also found themselves on the waters for both recreation and transport.  Over the next few decades, the result was an alarming loss of life by drowning.

Changing With the Times: Much has changed in the past century, but water presents the same hazards—and with the creation of new water recreation options such as home swimming pools, water parks and spas, additional worries. Yet in our hectic times, water also presents wonderful opportunities for relaxation and recreation.

General Water Safety Tips

If you haven’t taken a swimming or water safety course lately, perhaps you’d like a short refresher on basic water safety:

• Learn to swim. The best thing anyone can do to stay safe in and around the water is to learn to swim.
• Always swim with a buddy; never swim alone. 
• Swim in supervised areas only.
• Obey all rules and posted signs.
• Watch out for the “dangerous too’s”–too tired, too cold, too far from safety, too much sun, too much strenuous activity.
• Don’t mix alcohol and swimming. Alcohol impairs your judgment, balance, and coordination, affects your swimming and diving skills and reduces your body’s ability to stay warm.
• Pay attention to local weather conditions and forecasts. Stopswimming at the first indication of bad weather.
• Know how to prevent, recognize and respond to emergencies.

For more information about Water Safety, please contac the Chapter at (850) 878-6080 or visit www.tallyredcross.org

Tips for Families to Follow During a Hurricane Watch/Warning

It is important that people in the community become familiar with hurricane watch and warning messages and plan ahead to reduce the chances of injury or major property damage. A hurricane watch is issued when weather conditions are favorable for a hurricane to impact a specific geographic area within 36 hours. A warning is issued when hurricane conditions are expected within 24 hours or less.

During a hurricane WATCH:

• Listen for weather updates and hurricane progress reports via crank or battery-operated radio or television. Be prepared to evacuate if local officials advise it.
• Get a crank or battery-operated radio, flashlight and extra batteries.
• Ensure your emergency preparedness kit has the items you need, including a three-day supply of food and water (one gallon per person per day) for evacuation and two-week supply for home , first aid kit, medications (seven day supply), copies of important documents, cash and clothing.
• Fill vehicles with fuel.
• Bring in lawn furniture, bicycles, toys, hanging plants, trash cans, garden tools and anything else that can be picked up by the wind.
• Secure your home by closing all windows and doors and then hurricane shutters.  If you don’t have shutters, board up windows and doors with plywood.
• Remove outside antennas if possible and if it can be done safely.
• Turn refrigerators and freezers to coldest setting. Open only when absolutely necessary and close quickly.  This will allow perishable food to last longer during a power outage.
• Store valuables and personal papers in a waterproof container on the highest level of your home.  Hurricanes can cause water damage inside homes.
• If you have a manufactured or mobile home, check tie-downs.  They may be less affected by high winds if they are tied down according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

During a hurricane WARNING:

• Keep the radio or television on and listen for updates as the hurricane can change direction, speed and intensity quickly.
• If you are advised to leave your home, do so immediately and take your pets with you.
• If you are advised to remain at home, stay inside, away from windows, skylights and glass doors. Stay in an interior room without windows and with as many walls between you and the outside winds as possible.
• Secure external doors and close all interior doors. Closed doors will help prevent damaging winds from entering rooms.
• Fill bathtubs and sinks with water to use later to flush toilets and wash up.
• If power is lost, turn off appliances to reduce power surge when electricity is restored. Do NOT use open flames, such as candles and kerosene lamps, as a source of light.

 If officials indicate evacuation is necessary:

• If time permits, secure your home by unplugging appliances and turning off electricity and the main water valve.
• Bring your emergency preparedness kit including food, water, prescription medicines and cash.
• Take warm protective clothing, blankets and sleeping bags.
• Tell someone outside of your storm area where you are going.
• Lock your home and leave immediately.
• Use evacuation routes and avoid flooded roads. Watch for washed-out bridges.

 

For more information on hurricane preparedness, contact our Chapter at (850) 878-6080 or visit www.tallyredcross.org

Image from NASA

Keep Pets Safe During Times of Disaster

Pets enrich the lives of individuals and families in more ways than can be counted.  In turn, they depend on their owners for their safety and well being. Just as households prepare to take care of family members, it’s important for people with pets or service animals to take steps ahead of time to keep them as safe as possible during a disaster or other emergency. The American Red Cross offers the following tips to help people with pets and service animals prepare for a disaster:

• Assemble a portable emergency preparedness kit for pets. Store items in a sturdy container that can be carried easily (plastic bin, duffle bag), and make sure to include:             
  • Sturdy leashes, harnesses and/or carriers to transport pets and service animals safely and ensure they can’t escape.
  • Water, food, bowls, cat litter/pan and manual can opener.
  • Medications, medical records, first aid kit, and veterinarian’s contact information.
  • Current photos of pets in case they get lost.
  • Pet beds and toys, if space permits. 
• Contact regional hotels and motels to check policies on accepting pets and restrictions on number, size, and species. Ask if “no pet” policies could be waived in an emergency.
• Ask friends, relatives, or others in neighboring areas whether they could shelter pets.  
• Ask local animal shelters or veterinarians if they provide emergency shelter or foster care for pets in a disaster. Animal shelters are caring for the animals they already have so this should be a last resort. 
• Keep a list of “pet friendly” places that are located along evacuation routes, including phone numbers.
• If told to evacuate, take your pets with you. If it is not safe for you to remain at home, it is not safe for your pets. 
• If an advanced warning is issued, call ahead to confirm emergency shelter arrangements for pets. Bring all pets inside in case of sudden evacuation orders.
• Make sure each animals’ vaccinations are up to date and that each is wearing a securely fastened collar with contact information. After evacuating, add the temporary shelter location on the back of the pet’s ID tag.   
• Small mammals (hamsters, gerbils, etc.) should be transported in secure carriers suitable for maintaining the animals while sheltered. Take bedding materials, food bowls, and water bottles. 
• Evacuations of large animals, such as horses or cattle, should be planned as early as possible. It may be difficult to maneuver large animal transport vehicles in evacuation traffic.  

For more information on hurricane preparedness, contact the Capital Area Chapter Chapter of the American Red Cross at (850) 878-6080 or visit www.tallyredcross.org

Babysitter Training Offered on June 17th and 19th

Babysitter’s Training has been newly revised by the American Red Cross with input from  youth just like you! The course is fun and fast-paced with hands-on activities, exciting video, role-plays and lively discussions. 

You’ll learn to be the best babysitter on the block.  Plus, you’ll gain the confidence to make smart decisions and stay safe in any babysitting situation.

Designed for 11 to 15 year olds, the Babysitter Training Course can help you-

• Supervise children and infants
• Perform basic child-care skills
• Choose age-appropriate games and toys
• Handle bedtime and discipline issues
• Identify hazards and prevent injuries
• Communicate effectively with parents
• Find and interview for babysitting jobs
• Care for common injuries and emergencies such as choking, burns, cuts and bee stings

 

Click here to watch a short presentation about the newly revised Babysitter’s program!

Our Chapter will be offering Babysitter training courses on June 17 and 19th. For more information, please contact our Chapter at (850) 878-6080 or visit www.tallyredcross.org

National CPR and AED Awareness Week

                                          

Everyday, in our community, the Capital Area Chapter of the American Red Cross helps people prevent, prepare for and resond to disasters and emergencies of all sizes. There is no question that our Chapter will be there to provide help and relief when severe weather strikes, after a home fire or disaster. But we also help people prepare for and respond to life’s emergencies.

This week (June 1-7th) is National CPR/AED Awareness Week. And as part of the week’s activities, our Chapter is offering CPR and AED courses. Red Cross training can give you the lifesaving skills and confidence to respond in an emergency. As we head into summer, it is important to know these lifesaving skills before participating in water related activities.

According to a recent Red Cross survey, one in two Americans claim to have had a near-drowning experience in their lifetime. Nearly half of the survey respondents will take part in a water-related activity this summer at places where there will be no lifeguard present. If more Americans knew how to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation CPR and use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED), more lives could be saved. The Red Cross recommends that at least one person in every household and place of business receive this training.

To learn more about our Chapter’s activities during National CPR/AED Awareness week and you can change a lfe, starting wiht your own, call (850)878-6080 or visit www.tallyredcross.org

Hurricane Season Kickoff with the Governor

This past Monday, we (at the Capital Area Chapter) had the pleasure to kick off the Atlantic Hurricane Season with Governor Charlie Crist and Interim Deputy Director of Florida Division of Emergency Management David Halstead at Home Depot in Tallahassee.

Governor Crist encouraged all Floridians to have a disaster plan and supply kit that includes at least a three-day supply of drinking water and non-perishable food for the entire family – including pets. 

“Floridians can protect their families and support their local economy by purchasing disaster supplies at area retailers,” said Governor Crist. “Every person has a role to play and a responsibility to prepare to the best of their ability.”  Governor Crist encouraged all Floridians to visit www.FloridaDisaster.org where they can find help making business and family plans, tips for protecting property during a storm, checklists for disaster supplies, and pet disaster plans.

 

 

In addition, our CEO David Chayer also announced the publication of the Annual Hurricane Survival Guide which went out in this past Sunday’s newspaper. The Hurricane Survival Guide is a great way for families to develop their Disaster Plan and to locate shelters and evacuations routes in their local area. The guide covers the following counties: Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Taylor, and Wakulla. An electronic version of the guide can also be found on www.haveahurricaneplan.com

Attorney General, American Red Cross: Prepare For Hurricane Season Early To Prevent Scams

TALLAHASSEE, FL – On the opening day of the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season, Attorney General Bill McCollum joined the American Red Cross to encourage Florida residents and guests to prepare early for hurricanes, thereby avoiding scams like price gouging when storms develop. The Attorney General noted that aside from the physical devastation storms can cause, hurricane season is also a time when con artists try to capitalize on the vulnerabilities of storm victims by price gouging on essential supplies such as food, water, ice, gasoline or a place to stay during an evacuation.

“Hurricane season breeds not only bad weather, but also potential bad actors in our state,” said Attorney General McCollum. “The best way to avoid becoming a victim of price gouging or any other storm-related scam is to be prepared well ahead of the storm.”

Floridians – as well as those who may plan to visit or stay in Florida during hurricane season – should have a plan ready.

“The American Red Cross is proud to partner with the Attorney General’s Office to help Florida residents. We see the devastation caused by disasters and we look forward to working with the Attorney General to help disaster victims be aware of potential scams and other threats,” said David Chayer, Chief Executive Officer for the Capital Area Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Click here to read the full article!