Safety Insurance: Preparing for Natural Disasters and Weather Emergencies

Natural disasters are the effect of natural hazards, such as avalanches, blizzards, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and wildfires. These unexpected events lead to financial, environmental loss, as well as loss of animal and human life.

Natural disasters can occur due to an individual's lack of preparedness, which leaves them vulnerable to uncontrollable forces. A natural hazard distinctly means a natural phenomenon that has not resulted in significant damage or loss of life. Some key points of preparedness involve securing one's home, developing an evacuation plan, and storing enough food and water to survive long periods of tumultuous activity.

Avalanche

• NYS Dept of Environmental Conservation: Provides an overview of avalanches, as well as how to avoid getting caught in one and what steps to take if an avalanche should happen to you.
• The State of Colorado: Public Preparedness Information: Avalanches: Colorado leads the nation's highest percentage of avalanche fatalities. Most of these fatalities occur in the “back-country” area outside of the regularly maintained ski slopes. The public can avoid avalanche risks altogether by paying close attention to three important variables: a steep incline, snow instability, and weather intensity.
• Washington Military Department: Avalanche Preparedness: A recommended safety guide detailing important steps to implement an avalanche preparedness program, including a vehicle and personal survival kit. This guide also features the North American Avalanche Danger chart to help notify surrounding visitors of potential threats.
• The State of California: Snow, Ice, and Avalanche: An online planning and preparedness guide for surrounding residents and tourists with plans to ski. This guide will equip these residents and tourists with the ability to recognize when an avalanche will occur and the proper methods to escape the chaos.
• The State of Idaho: Bureau of Homeland Security: Family Emergency Plan: This brief comprehensive guide offers tips and suggestions for building and maintaining a family emergency plan for residents and tourists within the state of Idaho.

Blizzards

• Federal Emergency Management Agency: Are You Ready: Winter Storms and Extreme Cold: FEMA addresses preparedness strategies for residents living in extreme winter weather zones. It includes strategies, such as winterizing homes, cars, and building the appropriate wardrobe before the bitter cold arrives.
• National Weather Service Forecast Office: Safety Guide: Winter Storm/Blizzard Preparedness and Safety: A basic necessities guide to protect and prepare the family during winter storms. It includes a list of helpful materials applicable to the home, cars and trucks, or farm and garden if you harvest food.
• The State of Washington's Department of Health: Public Health and Emergency Response Preparedness for Winter Storms: A basic handbook offering tips and suggestions to prepare and safely survive a winter storm or blizzard. It includes strategies to continue with everyday activities until the storm finally passes over.
• Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Emergency Preparedness for the Disabled: A general guide specifically targeted for disabled citizens who need extra attention during emergency situations, including natural disasters.
• York County Virginia: Winter Preparedness: A comprehensive guide covering safety strategies and tips that assist in building a preparedness plan for residents living in York County, Virginia. This includes key ideas for implementing safety precautions during a major winter storm, such as a blizzard.

Earthquakes

• S. Geological Survey: Earthquake Preparedness FAQ: A frequently asked questions guide that answers basic questions on safety procedures to follow during earthquakes of various magnitudes. This FAQ guide answers strategies, such as finding the appropriate place to hide during an earthquake, the right materials to save as preparation for an earthquake, and what to do during the aftermath.
• Be Ready Utah: Earthquake Preparedness: An earthquake preparedness guide specific for residents living in Utah. This guide includes tips for preparing children and the elderly, how to secure furniture, tips for pet owners and the physically challenged.
• The State of Idaho's Department of Emergency Management: Earthquake Preparedness: A strategical guide to help families prepare for earthquakes in Idaho.
• Missouri Department of Public Safety: Missouri Earthquake Preparedness: A preparedness guide aimed at educating Missourian residents of strategies and tips to implement before a major earthquake strikes.
• The Sate of Tennessee: Earthquake Preparedness Week: Evacuation Planning: A home evacuation preparedness plan outlined by Tennessee Emergency Management Agency.

Extreme Heat

• The State of Michigan: Extreme Heat Preparedness Tips: A comprehensive guide detailing the appropriate steps to take when dealing with extreme heat in the state of Michigan. The guide includes preparedness tips, steps to take when extreme heat strikes, steps to take when outdoors in a heat wave, and key signs to identifying potential hazards relevant to extreme heat.
• Fairfax County, Virginia: Extreme Heat Preparedness: A brief guide covering key points to preparing for extreme heat and methods to counteract heat exhaustion and other related hazards.
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association: Heat Wave: A Major Summer Killer: Heat is the number one weather-related killer. In fact, 1,500 people die each year from excessive heat. Find out the appropriate steps to take to prepare and survive excessive heat waves.
• The State of Louisiana: Office of Emergency Preparedness: Extreme Heat Information: A brief overview of extreme heat and what the community can do to curtail its effect on the elderly, children, and disabled individuals.
• The State of Arizona's Department of Economic Security: Seasonal Emergency Preparedness Tips: A comprehensive guide covering seasonal emergency preparedness tips for every kind of natural disaster, including extreme heat waves, monsoons, major storms, and lightning safety.

Floods

• The State of New York's Department of Health: Flood Preparedness: A comprehensive guide answering questions related to flooding, including information on what to do during a flood, what to do during the flooding aftermath, and other pertinent facts to consider before the flooding season begins.
• Boulder, Colorado: Flood Preparedness: A preparedness guide with the intent on educating residents of Boulder, Colorado of potentially lethal flooding if individuals and families are unprepared.
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration: Floods: An frequently asked questions guide that helps followers prepare for major flooding events.
• The State of West Virginia's Division of Homeland Security: Flood Preparedness and Response: An outlined preparedness and response plan for families and communities within the state of West Virginia.
• Citizens Corps: Community Preparedness Webinars for Flood Awareness: A webinar dedicated to informing participating Citizen Corps members of flooding preparedness and response procedures for their individual communities.

Hurricanes

• Library of Congress: Hurricane Response and Recovery: A detailed guide for community response and recovery teams faced with the preparation and aftermath of hurricane activity in targeted zones.
• The State of Rhode Island: Hurricane Preparedness: A comprehensive guide covering pertinent information addressing hurricane preparedness, including emergency shelter lists, preparation guides for boaters, evacuation plans, disabled assistance plans, animal safety plans, and insurance-related guides for damages incurred through hurricanes.
• South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control: Hurricane Preparedness: A comprehensive list of hurricane preparedness and evacuation plans, including shelter lists.
• Environmental Protection Agency: General Hurricane Information: A thorough compilation centered on educating residents on preparing, responding, and recovering from hurricane activity within targeted areas.
• United States Department of Housing and Urban Development: Hurricane Preparedness in Virginia: A preparedness and response guide for hurricanes that covers preparation tips, evacuation plans, recovery plans, and storm watch information.

Landslides

• Seattle, Washington's Department of Planning and Development: Emergency Preparedness Goal: A preparedness and response guide for natural disasters, including earthquakes, landslides, and floods.
• The State of Oregon's Department of Geology and Mineral Industries: This guide provides key information on the geographical whereabouts of previous landslide activity within Oregon.
• The American Red Cross: Landslide Safety Checklist (PDF): A document detailing the appropriate measures to prepare, respond, and recover from landslide activity within a general area.
• Public Health Emergency: Landslides: An overview and preparedness guide for U.S. States facing dangers of landslides during floods.
• Federal Citizen Information Center: Disaster Guide to Landslides: An information preparation and response guide for citizens in the direct path of a landslide, which includes helpful strategies and tips addressing short-term and long-term sheltering options, water and food supply management, and water supply treatment.

Lightning

• Kid's Vision: Hurricane Preparedness and Lightning: A preparedness plan for families to address the potential lightning hazards and what their children should do if caught in a lightning storm.
• One Storm: Lightning Facts: An information fact sheet covering important information related to lightning storms and ways to prepare and respond if it ever poses a serious threat.
• Carter Lake: Lightning Facts and Tips for Inside and Outside of the Home: A basic preparedness plan with fast facts and easy to implement tips while inside and outside of the home during a lightning storm.
• Monsoon Safety: Lightning Safety: A brief overview of lightning safety procedures and other means to minimizing risk of injury and even fatality.
• American Red Cross, Mid-Florida: Lightning Safety: A lightning safety guide for Florida residents living in the central region of the lightning capital of the world.

Tornadoes

• Minnesota State University: Tornado Safety: A comprehensive tornado safety guide, including important danger signs of an approaching tornado, procedures if stuck at home, school, outdoors, and in a vehicle.
• Texas Extension Disaster Education Network: Tornado Preparedness and Safe Rooms: An emergency preparedness and response guide for residents looking for safe rooms during a tornado.
• Oklahoma University: The Police Notebook: Tornado Safety Information: A general tornado information guide that will help Oklahoman residents prepare and seek shelter while caught in the middle of a tornado's path.
• Amherst College: Tornado Preparedness: A comprehensive tornado preparedness guide addressing key informational points from basic definitions to preparation, response, and recovery procedures.
• University of North Texas: Tornadoes: A general guide for tornado information, including the differentiation between a tornado watch and a tornado warning.

Tsunamis

• Geo-hazards International: Tsunami Preparedness Handbook: A comprehensive guidebook for tsunami preparation, response, and recovery for communities nearby the shores with heavy seismic activity.
• NOAA's National Weather Service: Tsunami Warning Center: Provides a map of the Pacific Ocean and lists any potential warnings for tsunamis that may occur.
• Evergreen State College: How a Tsunami Happens: An educational paper explaining how a tsunami forms and the reasons behind its occurrence.
• The National Academic Press: Tsunami Warning and Preparedness: A comprehensive handbook on the need for tsunami preparedness and response teams for the West Coast of the United States.
• National Academy of Science: Public Education Needed in U.S. Tsunami Preparedness: An article detailing how properly educating the public will help solidify tsunami preparedness policies within the United States.

Volcanoes

• USGS: Volcano Hazards Program: Shows volcanoes around the United States and assigns each a color based on level of concern. Allows residents around each volcano to keep track of any potential activity that may occur.
• Preparing for Volcanic Emergencies: This guide helps people to prepare for volcano eruptions in order increase public awareness and to help save lives.
• King County Office of Emergency Management: Volcanoes Preparedness: Volcanoes can cause significant damages, even injury and fatalities if unprepared. Washington State has five active volcanoes, including Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Glacier Peak, Mount Adams and Mount Saint Helens. Mount Saint Helens alone killed 57 people in 1980, and caused nearly one billion dollars in property damage.
• Teton County, Wyoming: Volcano Preparedness: An article detailing the science behind volcanoes and what preparedness and response teams can do to help communities if a eruption ever occurs.
• Northwest Center for Public Health Practice: Volcano Preparedness: A presentation covering volcano preparedness plan for PHNs.

Wildfires

• University of Pittsburgh: Disaster Preparedness and Response: Wildfires: A wildfires disaster preparedness and response program outlined by the CDC and other government agencies.
• Colorado State University: Wildfire Preparedness for Horse Owners: A preparedness plan for horse owners concerned with wildfires breaking out within their area.
• University of Minnesota: Wildfire Preparedness: An interview with Kristen Nelson, associate professor of Forest Resources and Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota, about what preparedness and response teams can do to prepare, respond, and recover from environmental wildfires.
• Texas A&M University: Wildfires Preparedness Checklist (PDF): A comprehensive wildfire preparedness checklist to apply within and around the house.
• Cornell University: Fire Safety Resources: More than 4,000 Americans die from fire each year. In fact,a house-fire can become life-threatening in under two minutes. A preparedness and evacuation plan could help save your life if implemented correctly.