American Red Cross Urges Caution at Home

Stay Safe When Returning Home or Beginning Your Recovery

WASHINGTON, Saturday, February 03, 2007 — As residents of Central Florida awoke this morning to updated reports of increased devastation in their community, some have begun to start the recovery process. If you have remained home and started to pick up the pieces or are returning home and surveying the damage, the Red Cross urges all residents to use extreme caution and stay safe. In the aftermath of a tornado:

• Listen to local and emergency officials – Use a portable radio or television to listen to the local news for updates, and follow instructions from emergency officials.
• Put on protective clothing – Put on long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, sturdy shoes and work gloves to protect yourself from broken items and debris.
• Check for injuries – Make sure you and your loved ones are okay and seek medical attention if needed.
• Watch for hazards in your neighborhood – Look out for fallen electrical wires, broken gas lines and debris from fallen power lines. Report downed lines immediately so that utilities can be turned off at the source. Avoid hazardous debris such as broken glass or spilled chemicals and do not go into damaged buildings.
• Inspect your home – Inspect your home for damage and get everyone out if it is unsafe. Contact local officials for additional information.
• Children and pets – If you have children and/or pets, try to keep them calm and comfort them. Even a normally docile animal when scared may react by biting or scratching, so handle service animals and pets with care.
• Use stored clean water – Contaminated water may have a bad odor or taste. Treat all water of uncertain purity before using it for drinking, food preparation or hygiene. For more information on treating water, please visit www.redcross.org
• Check on neighbors – Older adults and people with disabilities may require additional assistance during an emergency. Caregivers or neighbors with large households, especially those with small children or infants, may appreciate an extra hand as well.
• Eliminate unnecessary travel – Unnecessary travel may hamper efforts by emergency and construction crews. In addition, traffic signals stop working during an outage, creating congestion and fallen trees, branches or other debris that may make roads inaccessible.

One of the most common problems caused by tornadoes is loss of electricity. If you experience a blackout, and it is otherwise safe for you to remain in your home, the following tips can help you cope until power is restored:

• Turn off electronic devices – Turn off electrical appliances or equipment that were powered on when the electricity went out. Leave one light turned on to easily determine when power has been restored.
• Use battery-powered lights – Due to the extreme risk of fire, avoid candles during a power outage and opt instead for flashlights or other battery-powered lights.
• Keep refrigerator doors closed – Avoid opening the refrigerator and freezer to keep the contents cold. As soon as power is restored, check temperatures. Perishable foods in the refrigerator should not be above 40 degrees for more than two hours. If the food in the freezer has ice crystals and is not above 40 degrees, you can refreeze. When in doubt, throw it out.
• Follow proper directions for generator use – Do not run a generator inside a confined space, such as a home or garage, due to the extreme dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning. If you use a generator, connect the equipment you want to power directly to the outlets on the generator. Do not connect a generator to a home's electrical system unless you have an approved power transfer switch installed.

For more information regarding how individuals and families can prepare for disasters, visit www.redcross.org or contact your local Red Cross chapter.

All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year, disasters like the Midwest ice storms, by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of disaster. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation. Call 1-800-REDCROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the Disaster Relief Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P. O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org.