Community and Cultural Affairs

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HOME / OFFICE OF PUBLIC SAFETY / EMERGENCY MEASURES ORGANIZATION / PREPAREDNESS AT HOME /

Be Ready to Evacuate

If the emergency is serious enough, you may decide to evacuate on your own or you may be asked to leave your home and go to a nearby evacuation centre, like a school gym or a community hall.

If you have to evacuate:

• Leave immediately
• Take your Emergency Survival Kit with you
• Listen to the radio and follow instructions from local emergency officials
• If you are instructed to do so, shut off water, gas and electricity
• Make arrangement for pets
• Wear clothes and shoes appropriate to conditions
• Lock the house
• Follow the routes specified by the officials. Don’t take shortcuts. A shortcut could take you to a blocked or dangerous area
• If you have time, leave a note telling others when you left and where you went. If you have a mailbox, you could leave the note there.
• If you are evacuated, sign up with the registration centre so you can be contacted or reunited with your family and loved ones
• If you have to evacuate your home for a prolonged period during a winter power failure, drain the water from the plumbing system. Starting at the top of the house, open all taps, flush toilets several times and open the drain valve in the basement. Drain your hot water tank by attaching a hose to the tank drain valve and running it to the basement floor drain. (If you drain a gas-fired water tank, the pilot light should be turned off -- the local gas supplier should be called to re-light it!) Unhook washing-machine hoses and drain.

Checklists

Think of any special needs that someone in your family might have. Include any other items that your family would need. Here are some suggestions.

• Babies / Children
  • Toddlers diapers
  • Bottled milk
  • Toys
  • Crayons and paper
• Other family members
• Prescription medication
• Extra eye glasses
• Keep at least one week supply of medication in your emergency kit and include copies of prescriptions for your medicine and glasses
• Pets dog/cat food

Have at least a three-day supply of food and water on hand. Choose ready-to-eat foods that your family likes. And choose food that doesn't need refrigeration.