Preparing for crisis situations together with your family and community

• THE ABILITY OF YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY TO COPE IN CRISIS SITUATIONS DEPENDS, ABOVE ALL, ON YOU!
• THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY IS TO PREPARE IN ADVANCE FOR CRISIS SITUATIONS!
• ONLY YOU KNOW YOUR FAMILY’S NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES!
• COOPERATE WITH YOUR NEIGHBOURS AND COMMUNITY WHEN PREPARING FOR CRISES!
• BE PREPARED TO COPE INDEPENDENTLY FOR A WEEK!

• Be aware of which crisis situations may endanger you, what their impact is on your everyday life, and how to prepare for them together.
• Talk through how to behave in different situations. For example:
  • do all family members know when and how to call for help;
  • in which situations is it definitely necessary to leave the home and in which situations must one remain indoors;
  • where can you go temporarily in case of danger (neighbours, friends, relatives, to the countryside, summer cottage);
• Make sure that all of your family members know how to turn off the water or gas, and switch off the power.
• Make sure that all of your family members know where the more important tools are, which may be needed in case of an emergency, for example, what should be taken along when leaving home or what supplies you should have at home.
• Consider whether your relatives or acquaintances need help in certain crisis situations and agree on how to maintain contact.
• Think about how to take care of your pets in different crisis situations.

• Get acquainted with your neighbours and exchange phone numbers.
• Find out who the key persons are in your community (the head of a village, chairman of apartment association, head of the urban settlement, etc.).
• Together with the key individuals in your community determine the dangers in your region and the impact of disruptions to vital services, and consider how to be better prepared for them together (such as joint purchasing of a power generator, water pump, fire extinguishing equipment and other tools).
• Determine together which members of the community who will require outside assistance in crisis situations.
• Agree on the procedure for notifying community members about the hazard and the mutual exchange of information in a crisis situation, and consider how you can help each other (incl. those who need outside assistance – elderly living alone, disabled persons, etc.).

If you wish to help others as a volunteer and contribute to society, join a volunteer organisation. Read more: https://vabatahtlikud.ee/eng

Download the code of conduct app “Ole valmis!” (Be Ready!), developed by Women’s Voluntary Defence Organization.
The app can be downloaded for free by searching for “Ole valmis!”:

• from Google Play store
• Apple e-store App Store

The International Sign of Civil Protection: