September marks the height of hurricane season in the Atlantic, thus it is appropriate that September is also National Preparedness Month (NPM). NPM is an annual campaign lead jointly by FEMA and Department of Homeland Security (through Ready.gov) to promote
family and community emergency preparedness. 2019’s theme is “Prepared, Not Scared”. There are weekly themes as well: Sept 1-7, Save Early for Disaster Costs; Sept 8-14, Make a Plan to Prepare for Disasters; Sept 15-21, Teach Youth to Prepare for Disasters; Sept
22-30, Get Involved in Your Community’s Preparedness. Campaign hashtags are #BeReady, #PreparedNotScared.
Being prepared for an emergency is vital, it can mean the difference between life and death. Some tips: Make an emergency fund to prepare financially, check your insurance coverage, make an emergency plan in case of fire or natural disaster, sign up for local emergency alerts and warnings, create a document with phone
numbers for local emergency personel and national resources, put emergency kits together for your home and vehicle - extra water, hard candy, flashlights and batteries, non-perishable food items, first aid kits, extra clothes and blankets etc. The NPM provides a variety of resources, including emergency checklists. You can
find this information https://www.ready.gov/september.
Stay safe and be prepared, not scared!