Emergency Management

Look at each of these potential disasters and evaluate which have the highest probability of affecting you and your family: those are the disasters that you want to concentrate your planning on to begin with. Always keep in mind, however, that almost all of these situations could potentially affect Teton County. For this reason, it is best to have a general preparedness plan that can be effective in any situation.

One very simple way to formalize a plan is to fill out this online PDF document by the Department of Homeland Security and Ready.gov. You'll need the free Adobe Reader program to open this document, and you can get that here. Keeping copies at home, work, and school are a good idea since you don't know where you will be when a disaster strikes.

The two most important things to keep in mind are to have a predetermined meeting place and an out-of-area emergency contact. The reason to have both of these prepared ahead of time is the likelihood of phone service either being inoperable following a disaster or local lines operating at full capacity due to the calls for emergency service.

Check out these links for important information on 72 hour kits:

• Ready.gov: Basic Disaster Supplies Kit
• American Red Cross: Build a Disaster Supply Kit
• CDC & American Red Cross "Get a Kit" Page
• Build a 72 hour kit by gathering a few items a week.
• Download a 72 hour preparedness computer program with information on kits, specific disasters,and preparation checklists.

Another important source of information is NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio. Teton County Emergency Management recommends that every home and business has one of these vital pieces of emergency preparedness equipment. NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio is one of the main methods Teton County will use to notify its citizens and visitors of impending hazards, or to relay instructions following a disaster.

You can also get a free copy of Teton County Emergency Management's new DVD entitled "Be Prepared Teton County!" which has several videos on preparedness plus preparedness documents which you can access from your computer. Click here to learn more.

Lastly, you can take classes, both online and locally, that can help you to prepare for a disaster. The American Red Cross of Wyoming offers CPR and First Aid classes. Both of these skills are useful not only during a disaster, but any time. Another option is to take classes through FEMA's Independent Study Program. Follow the link below to learn more about these classes and get a general description of each.