After a Disaster
Emergency Management
Assessment and Clean-up
If you have been evacuated, do not return to your home until you have been directed to do so by state or local officials.
Keep tuned to local Media for information about such things as caring for your household, where to find medical help, and applying for financial assistance.
Do not become a spectator. Unnecessary travel into the impacted areas could hinder the efforts of Public Safety officials.
Drive only when and where necessary. Streets may be filled with debris or flooded. Closed roads are for your protection, in that they may be weakened and could collapse.
Upon returning, do not turn on any electronic equipment until the electricity has been safely restored.
Be sure to check all electronic equipment for water damage. If you are uncertain, throw them away. It is better to be safe than risk electrocution.
Watch for loose or dangling power lines. Assume any downed wire is a live wire! Be careful when clearing fallen trees with a chainsaw.
If there is structural damage to your home or downed trees in the yard, use care.
If Public Safety officials determine it is safe, open doors and windows to ventilate your home.
Limit your use of the telephone, utilizing it only for emergency calls.
Use bottled water until local officials have determined the safety of the water supply.
Guard against spoiled food. If the power was disrupted, food in the refrigerator may have spoiled. Freezers can keep food for several days, if unopened.
Do not refreeze food once it begins to thaw.
Use generators outdoors, in well ventilated areas.
For specific assessment and clean-up remedies, contact the appropriate Town of Northborough Departments.
EMPOWER YOURSELF
Immediately following a disaster, emergency crews cannot respond everywhere at once. You could be the difference between life and death for someone close to you. Make it a practice to check on elderly neighbors and those with disabilities. Get yourself some invaluable training on life-saving techniques.
MAINTAIN YOUR PLAN
Once you and your family have developed your plan, you need to practice and maintain it. For example, ask questions to make sure your family remembers meeting places, phone numbers, and safety rules. Conduct drills and create theoretical scenarios and see how family members respond.
Do not wait for a disaster or emergency to occur. Plan and prepare now so that when an unplanned disaster or emergency does occur, you and your family will be ready.