In Canada, the first full week in May is Emergency Preparedness Week. With fossil fuel-driven climate change making emergencies like floods, wildfires, and extreme heat more common across North America, being ready in advance will help you stay safe and centered during the emergency, and help you recover quickly afterwards.
In this article we outline six steps you can take to prepare your home, family, and community for climate emergencies.
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- KNOW THE RISKS
Knowing your risk for a climate emergency means understanding how likely your area is to face certain climate emergencies. By recognizing these risks, you can take proactive measures to protect yourself. With that said, making an emergency plan like the one linked in step 2 here works across a broad range of potential disasters like flood and fire.
The My Climate Plan platform will help you find out what your local risks are, with new climate impacts and region-specific information being added over time.
Sign up as a free or Founding Member to be part of our community and get early access to the platform when it launches in early Summer 2024.
If you would like information on the climate impacts you face in your area now, we welcome you to send us a message at community@myclimateplan.com, and we can look into it for you as we continue to build out the platform.
– - MAKE A PLAN
Every household needs an emergency plan, and it takes just 20 minutes to create. Your plan can include details like important contact information for family members, neighbours, and emergency services, as well as evacuation routes and meeting points
GetPrepared.ca has a tool to help you build yours in Canada, and you can use Ready.gov in the US.
– - GET PREPARED
If you already have a sense of the most likely impacts in your area, we’ve created resources to help you prepare for some of the most common climate-fuelled risks
- BUY OR BUILD AN EMERGENCY KIT
Your emergency kit should contain the items you need to keep you and your loved ones safe for at least 72 hours. This should include a larger kit that has everything you need if you have to shelter-in-place, and a smaller grab-and-go bag for quick evacuation.
72 Hrs has pre-made kits you can purchase, and My Climate Members receive 20% off. Or if you have time, you can build your own based on these recommendations.
We’ve also created a resource that includes specific items you can include in your emergency kit to make it climate-ready.
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- GET NOTIFIED
Your country’s national emergency alert system (CAN/US) will be used for the most serious alerts. You can also download apps that will notify you of extreme weather events forecasted for your area like the FEMA app in the US, and WeatherCAN in Canada.
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- CONNECT WITH YOUR NEIGHBOURS
Neighbours are often each other’s first support during an emergency situation, as first responders may be overwhelmed. Preparing with your neighbours before an emergency strikes will mean a better response and a faster recovery. Work with your neighbours to create a “safety buddy” system
For example, if you live alone and/or are vulnerable, find someone who can check on you and offer support when a climate emergency strikes. Or, make a list of vulnerable people in your neighbourhood that may need some extra assistance, and offer to include them in your emergency plans.
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While preparation is key, it’s only half of the story. We also need to keep being proactive to speed up the shift from fossil fuels to clean energy so we can limit the duration and frequency of future climate emergencies.
We have the power to build a climate safe future if we act now. Members of the My Climate Plan community get a newsletter called the Weekly that is filled with actions you can take to get decision-makers to act at the speed and scale necessary. You can sign up here – there are free and paid versions of membership.
Stay safe, and take good care.
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