Recovery:
Click on the above link for an interactive preparedness exercise. Walk through the steps of building a kit, making a plan, and find out the information that you need to know in the event of a disaster.
The American Red Cross has prepared this information to encourage you
to take precaution to help keep you safe and speed your recovery after
a disaster. You will also find ideas on what you can do to help make
yourself and your home safer from future disasters.
Immediately After-
Check the area around you for safety.
Have injuries treated by a medical professional. Wash small wounds
with soap and water. To help prevent infection of small wounds, use
bandages and replace them if they become soiled, damaged or
waterlogged.
Avoid using the telephone (cellular or landlines) if a large number
of homes in your area have been affected by a disaster. Emergency
responders need to have the telephone lines available to coordinate
their response. During the immediate post- disaster time period, only
use the telephone to report life-threatening conditions and call your
out-of-town emergency contact.
Remain calm. Pace yourself. You may find yourself in the position of
taking charge of other people. Listen carefully to what people are
telling you, and deal patiently with urgent situations first.
If you had to leave your home, return only when local authorities
advise that it is safe to do so. Also, be sure to have photo
identification available, because sometimes local authorities will only
permit people who own property in a disaster-affected area back into
the area.
Except in extreme emergencies or unless told to do so by emergency
officials, avoid driving during the immediate post-disaster period.
Keep roads clear for rescue and emergency vehicles. If you must drive,
do not drive on roads covered with water.
If the disaster was widespread, listen to your radio or television
station for instructions from local authorities.
If the area was flooded and children are present, warn them to stay
away from storm drains, culverts and ditches. Children can get caught
and injured in these areas.
Recovering Emotionally
Your own and your family's emotional care and recovery are just as
important as rebuilding a home and healing physical injuries. You may
be surprised at how you and others may feel after a disaster. Disasters
can stir up many different feelings and thoughts. People may experience
fear concerning their safety or that of a loved one, shock, disbelief,
grief, anger and guilt. Memory problems, anxiety and/or depression are
also possible after experiencing a disaster.
Disasters are upsetting experiences for everyone involved. Children,
senior citizens, people with disabilities and people for whom English
is not their first language are especially at risk. Children may become
afraid and some elderly people may seem disoriented at first. People
with disabilities may require additional assistance. It is important to
let children and elderly people know that they are safe and that you
will help them find a safe place to stay. It is important that you try
to talk with them in a calm way.
Picking Up the Pieces After a Disaster (link to PDF)
Picking Up the Pieces After a Fire (link to PDF)
When disaster strikes, a child's view of the world as a safe and
predictable place is temporarily lost. Children become afraid that the
event will happen again and that they or their family may be injured or
killed. The damage, injuries and deaths that can result from an
unexpected or uncontrollable event are difficult for most children to
understand. How a parent or other adult reacts to a child following any
traumatic event can help children recover more quickly and more
completely. Children of different ages react in different ways to
trauma.
Some basic steps you can take to meet physical
and emotional needs -
Try to return to as many of your personal and family routines as
possible.
Get rest and drink plenty of water.
Limit your exposure to the sights and sounds of disaster, especially
on television, the radio and in the newspapers.
Focus on the positive.
Recognize your own feelings.
Reach out and accept help from others.
Do something you enjoy. Do something as a family that you have all
enjoyed in the past.
Stay connected with your family and/or other support systems.
Realize that, sometimes, recovery can take time.
Helping Pets
If you have pets, try to find and comfort them. A scared animal may
react by biting or scratching. Handle animals carefully and calmly.
Pets can become upset and react in unusual ways, such as spraying
urine, defecating on floors or scratching/biting furnishings. Since
pets will need regular care and attention to help them calm down, try
to leave pets with a family member, friend, veterinarian or boarding
facility while you are cleaning up your home. Animals are naturally
inquisitive and could get injured if they are brought back to a damaged
home.
Use toys, a blanket or favorite human's unsoiled clothing to comfort
pets.
Make sure pets are fed their usual diet, and have plenty of water.
Visit your pets regularly, speak calmly and take some time out to
play with them. Doing so can help you in your recovery, as well.
Checking Your Home
To make sure your residence is safe to enter, check with local
authorities. Do not cut or walk past colored tape that was placed over
doors or windows to mark damaged areas unless local authorities advise
that it is safe to do so. If a building inspector has placed a
color-coded sign on the home, do not enter it until you get more
information, advice and instructions from local authorities.
If you have children, leave them with a relative or friend while you
conduct your first inspection of your home after the disaster. The site
may be unsafe for children, and seeing the damage firsthand may upset
them even more and cause long-term effects, including nightmares.
Checking for Structural Damage
Check the outside of your home before you enter. Look for loose power
lines, broken or damaged gas lines, foundation cracks or other damage.
See if porch roofs and overhangs still have all their supports. If you
see damage on the outside, it could indicate that the inside of your
home is
seriously damaged and unsafe. In this situation, ask a building
inspector or contractor to check the structure before you enter.
If there is no significant visible outside damage, then check inside.
Carefully open the door. If it is jammed, do not force it open. It may
be providing support to the structure of your home. Find another way to
enter your home. Those who do enter your damaged home should wear long
pants, a long-sleeved shirt, closed-toed rubber- soled shoes or boots
and work gloves. Depending on the situation, dust masks, safety glasses
(or goggles) and/or a hard hat may also be necessary. Many people are
injured after disasters during clean-up—the last thing that you want to
do is add injuries to the list of things to take care of after a
disaster.
Smell or sniff for gas. If you detect the odor of natural or propane
gas or hear a hissing noise, leave the property immediately and get
well away from it. Call the fire department using a cellular telephone
or a neighbor's phone. If the fire department instructs you to do so,
turn off the gas with the proper tool at the valve on the outside
meter. When natural gas is turned off at the main valve, it must be
turned back on by a professional to ensure that the proper sequence is
followed to restore gas service and prevent possible gas leaks, fires
or an explosion.
If you have a propane tank system, turn off all valves and contact a
propane supplier to check the system out before you use it again.
Beware of animals, such as rodents, snakes, spiders and insects that
may have entered your home. As you inspect your home, tap loudly and
often on the floor with a stick to give notice that you are there.
Animals (including snakes) do not want encounters with humans, and will
move away if you make your presence known.
Objects, such as furnishings or building parts that have been
damaged, may be unstable. Be very cautious when moving near them. Avoid
holding, pushing or leaning against damaged building parts.
Check the ceiling for signs of sagging. Water from fire hoses, wind,
rain or deep flooding may wet plaster or wallboard. Since damaged
plaster or wallboard will have to be replaced anyway, you can try to
knock it down but do so carefully. Wear protective clothing, including
eye protection and a hard hat. Use a long stick, and stand well away
from the damaged area. If the ceiling is sagging from the weight of
water, poke holes in the ceiling starting from the outside of the bulge
to let water drain out slowly. Take your time, and knock away small
chunks at a time. Striking the center of the damaged area first may
cause the ceiling to collapse.
Check the floor for signs of sagging. Again, keep in mind that
plywood and other flooring that was damaged by water could collapse
under human weight. Avoid walking on sagging floors. If small sections
of floors are sagging, place thick plywood panels or thick, strong
boards on the floor to cover the damaged area. Be sure the wood extends
at least 8–12 inches on each side of the sagging area.
If it is dry out, open windows and doors to ventilate and dry your
home.
If the power is out, use a flashlight to inspect for damage and for
as long as the power remains out. Do not use any open flame, including
candles, to inspect for damage or serve as alternate lighting.
Disconnect and check all appliances for water damage and broken
connections before using them.
Make temporary repairs, such as covering holes, bracing walls and
removing debris. Save all receipts. (See financial section.)
Take photographs of the damage. You may need these to substantiate
insurance claims later.
Checking Utilities and Major Systems
Telephones
Check each telephone to see if it is still on the hook. Hang up any
phones that have been knocked off the hook. Wait a few minutes, and
then pick up one phone to listen for a dial tone to know whether you
have working telephone service.
If you do not have a dial tone, try unplugging all the telephones.
Plug in one at a time and listen for dial tone. This will help you
determine if the telephone instrument is broken or the phone service is
completely out.
If the event affected only your home (no others in your
neighborhood), contact the telephone company using a cellular telephone
or a neighbor's phone to report the problem and to request repair
services.
Electrical Systems
If you see sparks, broken or frayed wires, or if you smell hot
insulation, turn off the electricity at the main fuse box or circuit
breaker.
If there is a pool of water on the floor between you and the fuse box
or circuit breaker panel, use a dry wooden stick to try to reach to
turn off the main fuse or breaker, but do not step or stand in water to
do that. If you cannot reach the fuse box or breaker panel, call a
qualified electrician for assistance.
Inspect the panel box for any breakers that may have tripped. A
tripped breaker may indicate damaged wiring inside your home. Do not
turn on breakers that tripped; instead, turn tripped breakers to the
“off” position and mark them with a piece of tape to indicate which
ones were tripped when you found them. Have a qualified electrician
determine if there are hidden internal electrical problems and fix
them.
Turn off all other circuit breakers except the one marked “main” and
the breakers for the room(s) in which you will be working. When the
power is restored to your home, turn breakers back on, one at a time,
for each room as you get to it during the recovery/restoration process.
Use a flashlight to inspect each fuse to see if it is still in
working order. Replace each broken fuse with a fuse of exactly the same
amperage rating. Do not use fuses of lower or higher ratings as
replacements, or any other object such as a coin or strip of metal to
bypass the protection that fuses provide.
If breakers or fuses are on, but there is no power in your home, turn
off the main breaker or unscrew the main fuse, and call the power
company. You don't have to contact them if your whole neighborhood is
without power.
Climate Control Systems
If you have a heating oil tank system, turn off all valves and
contact a professional specializing in maintenance of such equipment
before you use it again.
Plumbing
If you suspect sewage lines are damaged, avoid using sinks, showers
or toilets and call a plumber.
If water pipes are damaged, turn off the water at the main valve.
Call a plumber for assistance. If the disaster that affected you also
affected your neighborhood or your community, then your area's water
utility service may have been damaged or disrupted, or it may be
operating with less pressure than usual. Therefore, listen to local
television or radio station broadcasts for instructions about the
safety of your water, and whether you have to
take any precautions such as boiling it before using it. If you are
unsure about the safety of your water supply, call your local water
utility company or public health agency.
Checking Household Items
Normal household items, such as cleaning products, can cause toxic
fumes and other hazards if they mix. If you smell a noxious odor, or
your eyes water from fumes of mixed chemicals, open a window and get
out of your home. Call for professional help.
If there are spilled chemicals that do not pose a health risk, be
sure to put on rubber gloves in addition to other protective clothing.
Clean up spills carefully. Discard spilled chemicals and rags used for
cleaning according to the advice of local authorities.
Throw away food, beverages and medicine exposed to heat, smoke, soot
or flood waters. If the refrigerator wasn't under water, food that was
in the freezer can be used if it still has ice crystals on it. If not,
discard it. Canned food is OK if it didn't get wet.
When Making Repairs
Carefully follow the instructions provided with tools and equipment
(such as chain saws, chippers and other power tools) to maintain
personal safety at all times. Wear personal protective
equipment—including goggles, gloves, long sleeves and long
pants—whenever you are operating power equipment. Keep children away
from power equipment.
Damaged locks (especially iron locks) should be taken apart and wiped
with oil. If locks cannot be removed, squirt machine oil through a bolt
opening or keyhole, and work the knob to distribute the oil. Hinges
should also be thoroughly cleaned and oiled.
Recovering Financially
Contact your insurance agent, broker or insurance company as soon as
you can to report how, when and where the damage occurred. Provide a
general description of the damage.
Prepare a list of damaged or lost items and provide receipts if
possible. Consider photographing or videotaping the damage where it
occurred for further documentation to support your claim.
If possible, keep damaged items or portions of those items until the
claims adjuster has visited your home. Do not throw away anything you
plan to claim without discussing it with your adjuster first.
Keep receipts for all additional expenses that you may incur such as
lodging, repairs or other supplies.
Make copies of all documents and pictures given to your claims
adjuster or insurance company. Besides insurance, there are many
questions related to taxes, expenses and determining just how you will
recover from a personal financial point of view. For helpful advice,
please see Disaster Recovery: A Guide to Financial Issues (A5076) which
is available from your local Red Cross chapter and at www.redcross.org.
Vital Documents and Whom to Contact About
Replacement
Driver's License Department of Motor Vehicles
Government Issued ID Contact the issuing authority
Insurance policies Your insurance agent or company
Military discharge Department of Veterans Affairs, papers
1-800-827-1000 or TDD/TTY 1-800-829-4833
Passports State Department—Passport Services, 202-955-0430 (24 hours)
Birth, death and marriage certificates Bureau of Records in the
appropriate state
Social Security or Medicare cards Local Social Security office,
1-800-772-1213 or TDD/TTY 1-800-325-0778
Credit cards The issuing companies as soon as possible
Mastercard Contact issuing financial institution
VISA 1-800-VISA911
Contact issuing financial institution
American Express 1-800-441-0519
Discover 1-800-discover (1-800-347-2683), TDD/TTY 1-800-347-7449
Titles to deeds Records department of the area in which the property is
located
Stocks and bonds Issuing company or your broker
Wills Your attorney
Income tax record The IRS center where filed, your accountant or
1-800-829-1040
Citizenship papers Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services,
1-800-375-5283
Mortgage papers Lending institution