September is National Preparedness Month

September is Nation Preparedness Month. It is a a nationwide, month-long effort hosted by the Ready Campaign to encourage people to prepare emergencies. Here in South Dakota we are coming up on another northern plains winter and memories of this spring's ice storm make this a good time to think about the future and plan for a natural disaster or other emergency.

Now is a good time to review or get together a Basic Disaster kit for your home.Double check now to make sure you have flashlights and batteries.

Also plan what you and your family are going to do if something happens.

Who will get the kids?

Do we need to check on grandma?

Where could we go if the power is out for a few days?

Does my family have an out of town contact to check in with?

Asking and answering questions like these now can take some of the edge off of an emergency. Preparing isn't all about strict planning and precise execution (but if you're into that go for it). It's about building a framework to work within in the event of an emergency.