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Plan ahead for safe fall, Halloween

From the Ada City-County Emergency Management office
As summer and out-of-town travel wanes, the Ada City-County Emergency Management (ACCEM) suggests a renewed focus on emergency planning.

“Whether you’re headed to a festival, market of game, you try to be aware of the impact the event will have on the area. Have you done the same level of planning for an evacuation out of your neighborhood in the case of a disaster?”

Consider…

How many ways are there in and out of your neighborhood?
Do any of the routes allow you to pick up family members/friends as needed?
Which route will get you to the interstate or a major highway the fastest?

“If you have children, introduce the concept of trip planning by laying out their trick-or-treat route with them,” the newsletter suggests. “While younger children always should be escorted by an adult during trick-or-treating, they still can help plan the walk.”

Talk to children about Halloween safety, crossing streets after dark as well as during daylight hours. Establish a return time and route home. This will help children become used to the idea of safely staying with a plan. After Halloween, practiced the family evacuation route with them.

Meeting place
Anytime you attend a large event with a group of people you run the risk of getting separated. When you first arrive, establish a location where everyone would meet if they get separated. This is especially important if there are children in the group.

Events are a great place to practice this concept. Once you have practiced it at a large, fun location, practice your two-home emergency meeting locations with your household members. The first location should be right outside of your home in case of a fire. The second should be outside your neighborhood in case of a large disaster. Traveling to the second location can be joined with the evacuation route practice as a group.

Dressed for success
Weather conditions can change rapidly this time of year. As you prepare for outings, you will often dress in layers of clothes just in case the weather takes a turn while you are out. But have you given the same amount of thought to the spare set of clothes in your 72-hour kit? Take a good look at your spare set of clothes and make sure they are durable and suitable for varied types of weather.

If you have trick-or-treaters in your household, evaluate their costumes for safety and comfort. Costumes should be loose enough that warm clothing can be worn underneath. Find creative ways to incorporate light sticks or flashlights into the costume.

Reflective tape applied to trick-or-treat bags or buckets also will add to the children’s safety.

Finally, sew or tape emergency phone numbers on the inside of the costume as a backup to the route planning in case you get separated. Most important, have a safe, fun fall.