Havre Fire Department firefighters tell Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line members how to prepare for various disaster scenarios Monday afternoon.
After a year of particularly devastating natural disasters and this month marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, September being National Preparedness month seems particularly important.
In the spirit of the month, the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line hosted a disaster preparedness presentation on Monday afternoon, to help kids understand what to do in the case of a natural disaster and how to be prepared.
“In light of recent events, including the recent natural disaster events in Montana, we just thought it was important for our members to know how to prepare for those types of situations and to have some of the those tools prepared, ” Samantha Hutchins, youth development specialist for the Boys & Girls Club, said.
She also spoke to the importance of having plans in place in the case of an emergency, like knowing how to get out of a house in case of a fire or how and where to meet if a family gets separated during an emergency.
The club brought in three firefighters from the Havre Fire Department to talk to children about different kinds of disasters that could affect the area and how to reasonably deal with them.
Capt. Kelly Jones said he thought the message was an important one, especially for kids of the age he was speaking to, from about 7 years old and up.
“This age group is getting to be about the age they can take care of themselves, ” Jones said. “We just want to make sure that they can take care of themselves. ”
The event also used a grant from the governor’s office to local AmeriCorps groups to buy supplies to put together small disaster preparedness kits, with medical supplies like band-aid, s disinfecting alcohol swabs, flashlights and batteries.
Hutchins said that the kits they had left over were being donated to local organizations that could use them, such as day care facilities.
How to make your own disaster preparedness kit:
Keep the following in a sealed plastic bag:
• 4 band-aids;
• 2 rubber gloves;
• 1 bandage;
• 2 alcohol wipes;
• 1 mylar blanket;
• 1 flashlight;
• 2 batteries.
