Stage One, section 6: Disaster Plan Update

Your care receiver's disaster plan may need to be reviewed and updated whether or not you live in the same home. Perhaps in the past he or she stayed at home during a hurricane or other disaster because of living in a non-evacuation zone. Perhaps he or she gathered storm supplies and put plywood or other window coverings on prior to each storm but cannot do that now.

Here are suggestions to help with disaster planning:

• Consider having your care receeiver stay with you at your home, if different, or having your family stay with the care receiver, looking at factors such as evacuation levels of each home, which home can be better prepared for a storm, and responsibilities to other adults, children, and pets as well as to the care recipient.

• Find out whether family members, neighbors, or persons for hire are available to help cover windows and doors before each storm. If not, try to protect windows using a method that does not require manual installation and removal.

• Look for an interior, windowless room that can be used by your care receiver as a safe room to wait out the storm.

• Make certain that glasses, medications, water, food, flashlights (candles are dangerous), other supplies, and important paperwork including the family information list, insurance policies, and more are available and protected. For what to include in a family information list, see Stage One, section 5: Information List and Notebook.

• Evaluate your need to evacuate to a shelter. There are some special needs shelters, which provide services such as oxygen. Some caregivers living in an evacuation zone decide that staying in a relative or friend?s home in an area that does not have to evacuate is much more comfortable. Make special provisions for oxygen, dialysis, or other services that may be affected.

• If your care receiver will require pick up by the County for evacuation to a public shelter, special needs unit, or hospital, register with County Emergency Management in advance. Transportation is not provided to evacuate to homes of friends or relatives, and Medicare covers only medically necessary hospitalization (arrange in advance if required). In Pinellas County, register with Emergency Management by calling 727-464-3800 or completing the form found under ?Evacuation Assistance Program? in the Local Preparedness section of Pinellas County Emergency Management?s web site, which can be found at www.pinellascounty.org/emergency. In Pasco, you may call the Office of Disaster Preparedness. The phone number for New Port Richey is 727-847-8137; Land of Lakes is 813-996-7341 and Dade City is 352-521-5137. The Pasco County Office of Emergency Management has a website which is www.pascocountyfl.net/oem/index.asp. You can also register by contacting the fire department.. The American Red Cross, Tampa Bay Chapter offers disaster preparedness assistance. The numbers in Pinellas are 727-446-2358 in Clearwater and 727-898-3111 in St. Petersburg. In Pasco, the number is 727-862-8685-Hudson. Most shelters do not allow pets, so make plans for pets to be cared for by relatives or friends or boarded in a non-evacuation zone. Pinellas County can now offer an alternative to pet owners who must seek public shelter during a mandatory evacuation with its first pet-friendly shelters. Pre-registration will be required. For questions or to have a PET FRIENDLY SHELTER REGISTRATION FORM mailed to you, call 727-582-2150.

• Take essential items if you are leaving home: two week supply of medications, cash, personal hygiene items (soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, etc), special dietary foods, identification, important papers, personal aids (glasses, hearing aides, dentures), and items like pain relievers or anti-acids.

• Take provisions that will make your stay away from home more comfortable: linens (including towels and wash cloths), sleeping bag or blankets, change of clothing, radio, flashlight, batteries, lawn chair, books or magazines.

• In Florida's Pinellas and Pasco Counties, you can obtain a copy of the Florida Department of Elder Affairs (DOEA) Disaster Preparedness Guide for Elders from the Senior Helpline by dialing 727-217-8111 in Pinellas and 1-800-861-8111 in Pasco. This Guide has general information about all types of disasters including terrorism and floods. It is available under Disaster Preparedness on the DOEA web site, www.state.fl.us/doea. Also look for information about a Family Disaster Plan and Disaster Supply Kit there.

• The St. Petersburg Times Hurricane Guide for North or South Pinellas, Pasco, and surrounding Florida counties is published as a special section in the St. Petersburg Times newspaper just prior to Hurricane Season, which starts June 1st. The Hurricane Guide includes an official evacuation map, tips for preparing for storms, and advertisements for various types of window protection such as hurricane resistant film and permanent storm shutters, if you and your care receiver are considering purchasing these. Find the St. Petersburg Times Hurricane Guide online on Pinellas County Emergency Management?s web site: www.pinelascounty/org/emergency/Local.htm. Evacuation information is available for North and South Pinellas, Pasco, and several other counties.

• The Public section of the Florida Division of Emergency Management"s web site, www.floridadisaster.org/DEMpublic.htm, provides Florida residents with emergency information such as road status by event and telephone number of the toll-free Florida Emergency Information Line (FEIL), 1-800-342-3557, an information service activated during a disaster. The site also lists the telephone numbers for the Federal Emergency Management (FEMA) National Tele-registration Center (1-800-621-3362 or 1-800-462-7585 (TTY). Registering with FEMA is the first step for individuals or businesses that need FEMA assistance after the President declares a disaster area.

• The National Weather Service web site, www.nws.noaa.gov, has local forecasts and warnings, radar and satellite images, maps, etc. Local radio and television stations provide this type of information, also, on the air and online. For web sites of local television stations and newspapers in the Tampa Bay area, visit the Links to Aging Resources section of the Area Agency on Aging of Pasco-Pinellas's web site, www.agingcarefl.org/links/local.