Is your Family Prepared for Emergencies?

COLLUS would like to remind our customers that we should all be prepared for emergencies in order to ensure we can remain safe and healthy during any type of situation which may arise. Emergencies can result from severe winter storms, ice storms, thunder storms and high winds which can all result in unpreventable power outages. COLLUS staff are prepared and ready to respond to outages regardless of the cause, however depending on the extent of the problem power may be restored in as little as a few minutes or last for days.  Emergencies can also be related to fires or floods which could force you out of your home. A plan is only effective if everyone in the family is prepared to execute it. Every family will benefit from practice drills so that when an emergency occurs everyone knows what to do.

Each home will also benefit from having an emergency kit packed and ready in the case of an emergency. The Government of Canada suggests the following as basic contents of a good emergency kit.

• Water – two litres of water per person per day (Include small bottles that can be carried easily in case of an evacuation order)
• Food – that won't spoil, such as canned food, energy bars and dried foods (remember to replace the food and water once a year)
• Manual can opener
• Flashlight and batteries
• Battery–powered or wind–up radio (and extra batteries)
• First aid kit
• Special needs items – prescription medications, infant formula or equipment for people with disabilities
• Extra keys – for your car and house
• Cash – include smaller bills, such as $10 bills (travellers cheques are also useful) and change for payphones
• Emergency plan – include a copy of it and ensure it contains in–town and out–of–town contact information

Click on this link to go to the Government Web Site for more detailed information:  http://www.getprepared.gc.ca/index-eng.aspx