September is National Preparedness Month, a nationwide effort to increase public awareness to the importance of preparing for emergencies, including natural disasters, and to encourage individuals to take action to prepare themselves and their families.

Don Bryant, director of the Kane County Office of Emergency Management, urges all residents and businesses to take a few simple steps to make themselves and their families better prepared for any type of emergency. These steps include:

• Get a Kit – Get a kit of emergency supplies that will allow you and your family to survive for at least three days in the event an emergency happens. The kit should include basic items like water, food, battery-powered radio, flashlight and a first aid kit.
• Make a Plan – Plan in advance what you and your family will do in an emergency. Your plan should include a communications plan and address sheltering-in-place and evacuation.
• Be Informed – Learn more about different threats that could affect your community and the appropriate responses to them by visiting www.ready.gov.
• Get Involved – After preparing yourself and your family for possible emergencies, take the next step: get training in first aid and emergency response and get involved in preparing your community. Citizen Corps provides residents with opportunities to prepare, train and support local emergency responders. For more information or to get involved visit www.citizencorps.gov to find your local Citizen Corps council.

Kane Health Department Involvement

The Kane County Health Department works daily to protect the health of the public in the event of an emergency.  Whether it is a bioterror attack or a naturally occurring outbreak of an infectious disease, the health department can activate plans to respond quickly and effectively.

The Health Department works with the Kane County Office of Emergency Management and a wide range of community partners to keep the residents of Kane County safe.  These partners represent the medical community, law enforcement, fire departments, schools, emergency management agencies and many other agencies on the local, state and federal level.

Emergency Preparedness at Home

(1) Stockpiling  Emergency SuppliesToolkit — English

• Fact Sheet: English, Spanish
• Checklist: English, Spanish

 (2) More resources

• Kane County Office of Emergency Management Website
• American Public Health Association
• ready.illinois.gov
• ready.gov

(3) Natural Disasters

• Overall
• Floods
• Summer – Extreme Heat
• Weather Emergencies
• Winter – Extreme Cold

(4) Bioterrorism Facts and Information — English, Spanish

• IDPH Bioterrorism Webpage