Emergency Preparedness
Preparing for Power Outages - What You Can Do…
- We know it is a big nuisance following even a brief outage
to reset all those flashing clocks. When buying clock radios
and other household electronic appliances, consider products
that feature a back up battery supply.
- Reserve a special place in the house for emergency
supplies. Pick somewhere easily accessible in the dark.
Consider including the following:
- A flashlight with fresh batteries
- A battery operated radio
- Matches and candles
- Cell phone
- Extra blankets, coats, hats and gloves
- Plastic garbage bags
- First aid kit
- Non-perishable foods, such as canned and dried goods
- Bottled water
- Disposable tableware and cutlery
- Manual can openers
- Extra cash
- Extra car keys
- Sleeping bags
- Toilet paper, other personal toiletries
- A loud whistle (this may come in handy if you have to
attract attention)
- Are there people with special needs? a baby, child,
elderly person? Any pets? Take into account their needs and
health issues, and make a plan to help them, should an outage
occur.
- If you have an automatic garage door opener, review your
owner's manual to learn how to open it manually.
- Consider an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for your
home computer. Compact units are available that will allow you
to save your computer files safely, and shut down without
losing your work.
- More economical and suitable for all sensitive equipment,
use surge protectors. Surge protectors reduce internal surges
before they reach your sensitive electronic equipment. They are
available in a variety of models and you can choose from units
that accommodate different numbers of plugs. They're intended
to protect all kinds of sensitive electronic equipment, from
office machines to entertainment systems.
- If someone in your home relies on electrically operated
medical equipment, make sure you know what to do in the event
of a power interruption. Check with your doctor or the
manufacturer of the equipment.
- Portable, or even permanently connected generators are
becoming popular. If you decide to buy one, read the
manufacturer’s instructions carefully, and if it is to be
permanently connected, make sure all work is inspected by the
Electrical Safety Authority – it’s the law! Check out our tips
on Generators.
- Stay away from fallen wires.
- Ice storms, high winds or fallen tree limbs can bring down
power lines. Even if a fallen wire seems dead, it can be
dangerous. Please call us with the location of the fallen wires
or report them to the local police immediately.
- If a power line falls across your vehicle, stay inside
until an emergency crew removes the line. Stepping out of
your vehicle onto the ground could be fatal if the power
line is live.
- If you must get out because of fire, jump clear without
touching the car and the ground at the same time. After
jumping, move away while keeping your feet on the ground.
Keep your feet together and shuffle at least 10m away from
the wire.
- Know where your home’s main electrical panel is located.
- Know where your fuse box or circuit-breaker box is located.
- Know the correct sizes of any fuses needed in your home and
keep spares on hand. Blown fuses must be replaced, not
repaired. Do not replace a fuse with one of higher amperage.
- If a fuse blows, disconnect or turn off the appliance(s)
you suspect may have caused the problem.
- Shut off the main electric switch before replacing a fuse.
- Know how to reset a circuit breaker. After turning off or
unplugging appliances on the circuit, push the switch firmly to
the off position, then turn it back on. If the overload is
cleared, the electricity will come back on.
- If your circuit breakers trip repeatedly, there could be a
problem with the appliance(s) on that circuit. If the
appliances are unplugged but the circuit breaker trips off
again, call an electrician.
What to do
if the power does go out >>>
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