TFCC Urges All To Be Prepared For Severe Weather This Spring
Posted by Nicky Miller on Mon, Apr 05, 2010 @ 08:11 AM
As schools and government agencies test their weather warning systems,
Jim Kennedy, CEO of
Twenty First Century Communications and an expert on emergency communications systems, offers a few tips and advice for this springs potentially severe weather.
To start, Kennedy said the Federal Emergency Management Agency has lots of great information to help prepare for severe weather. "FEMA' s Prepare, Plan, Stay Informed web site is a great place to start. But based on 20-years of experience I've learned a number of additional tips to keep families safe and informed during severe weather emergencies" Kennedy said. Here are Kennedy's top five tips:
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First, make sure you have a corded telephone. If the power goes out, your cordless phone won't work while the old-fashioned corded phone, powered by the phone line, usually keeps working. Also when severe weather hits, cell phone use goes through the roof often causing overloaded cell towers. Or if cell towers are knocked out your land line may be your only way to communicate."
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Stick a contact list in your wallet. Carry a copy of all important phone numbers in your wallet. If you have to leave the house or be evacuated you may not have time to grab your cell phone, so you need to keep important numbers with you. Or if the power is off for an extended period you may not have a way to keep your cell phone charged.
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Check with your city to see if they have an emergency notification system. Sirens are great but may not be heard with the windows closed and the air conditioning running. The key in weather emergencies is the ability to get information and updates from as many ways as possible. A good emergency notification system can call your landline, cell phone, email, and send you a text message - all at the same time and within seconds of the initial weather alert.
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Sign up for your city or county's emergency notification system and make sure to list as many different ways to contact you as possible. Remember, your cell phone number is not registered unless you sign up.
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If you're a business, make sure you have a business continuity plan and that your plan includes emergency notification. Business owners need to be able to quickly communicate critical information to employees to keep employees safe and their business up and running.
Kennedy concluded by adding "The best way to avoid significant problems during a severe weather emergency is to think ahead, and take steps to make sure you, your family and your business can be kept informed and updated."