After the raging tornadoes that passed through Georgia a week ago, a discussion on preparation for violent weather is essential to our survival. Unfortunately many people do not have a survival plan in place, but let’s make that a thing of the past.

Most recently, severe storms claimed the lives of 15 people in Georgia and caused approximately $75 million in damages throughout the state. These counties include Dade, Catoosa, Rabun, Meriwether, Spalding, Fayette, Floyd, Bartow and Lamar. In addition, hundreds of people were hurt, tens of thousands were without electricity and hundreds of homes and businesses were wiped off the face of the earth. And at least 300 people were in shelters because their homes were destroyed.

What’s in your emergency kit? What’s your plan of action? If you cannot answer these questions, this would be a great family project to take on this weekend. Families can make a chart and discuss the plan of action and make sure everyone understands the importance of completing this task. Use this as an opportunity to educate your family on the terminology used to identify severe weather, to determine were you will take shelter and how to stay inform about the situation at hand.

Here’s a list of items you may want to include in an emergency kit:
•First Aid Kit
•Flash Light
•Batteries
•Radio
•Food/Water

To prepare for tornadoes and other emergencies, visit Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) Ready Georgia campaign at www.ready.ga.gov .

Now that we are beyond the tornado, let’s reach out to the many Georgians that were affected by this disaster. Yet another family project, it raises awareness of the situation at hand and it helps our children to learn compassion for other people. Many organizations are seeking volunteers for tornado clean up and receiving monetary donations, nonperishable foods and other donated items to help families get back on there feet! To learn more about disaster relief, visit www.gema.state.ga.us/.