Your Guide To Emergency Preparedness For Apartment Dwellers In Westfield
When you reside in an apartment, you follow general safety precautions daily, like securing your door when you leave. But you may not give as much thought to larger-scale risks like natural disasters. Fires, tornadoes, and more can happen with little warning and lead to widespread devastation. While apartments are constructed to stand up to natural forces, you still must take precautions. Use this guide to learn more about emergency preparedness for apartment dwellers in Westfield and feel more secure where you live.
Prepare Yourself For Anything With An Apartment Emergency Kit
Whether you need to shelter in place or evacuate swiftly, having a well-stocked apartment emergency kit in your Westfield unit will make any emergency a little easier. Find a space in your apartment to stow a go-bag and additional emergency supplies like these:
- Flashlights
- Additional batteries
- Weather radio
- Medicine and first aid kit
- Power bank or wireless phone charger
- Three days of water and non-perishable food
- Durable shoes and extra clothes
- Children’s essentials
- Extra blankets
- Photocopies of important documents in a plastic bag
How To Be Ready For An Apartment Fire In Westfield
With so many Residents in the same building, apartment fires can become especially deadly. Being prepared increases your chances of avoiding harm.
Your property maintenance staff should ensure that fire extinguishers and fire alarms work in every apartment. Do not disable these. Follow community fire rules and avoid using open flames indoors. Don’t store things in hallways that may be in the way during an evacuation. Have an evacuation plan for your household.
If a small fire breaks out in your apartment, adhere to standard guidelines for taking care of it with water or a fire extinguisher. Use the extinguisher, baking soda, or salt on grease fires.
Evacuate right away if a fire spreads. Take the stairs and the closest exit and get away from the structure before you dial 911. Avoid propping open doors; they can let in drafts that accelerate the fire. Avoid going back inside to save possessions or others.
How To Stay Protected In Your Apartment During A Dangerous Storm
The Midwest often gets a great many tornadoes every year. Intense thunderstorms and high winds can also be dangerous. You may have learned in school to shelter in a cellar, but what do you do during a tornado in an apartment in Westfield?
The best spots for apartment dwellers are
- The bottom floor of an underground parking garage
- The lowest floor of your building, and a safe distance from windows
- A ground-floor neighbor’s apartment
- Interior halls or stairwells without windows
- An interior room or closet of your apartment
- Below a solid table
- Within the bathtub with a thick blanket to help protect from debris
Wear a bicycle helmet, hard hat, or pillow on your head. Avoid standing by windows or beside heavy objects that might topple onto you.
If your building suffers significant damage, evacuate as safely as possible. As you exit, be cautious of damaged power lines and gas leaks. Drive or walk to a safe place.
How To Stay Protected In Your Apartment During Winter Weather
Winter weather can turn a winter wonderland into a treacherous situation rapidly. Watch weather forecasts throughout the season and prepare for harsh weather before it comes. Don’t panic, but collect necessities before a blizzard hits and have a strategy for keeping warm in your apartment. Allow water to drip from your faucets to reduce the risk of frozen pipes.
Dial your emergency maintenance number immediately if you have a burst pipe or your furnace stops working during freezing temperatures. If you lose heat and power during a winter storm, abide by these tips:
- Stay inside
- Put on layers of warm clothing and bundle up in blankets
- Keep an eye on vulnerable individuals for frostbite or hypothermia
Do not use fuel-consuming appliances within your apartment to stay warm. They release toxic gases that collect inside.
Living With A Power Outage At Your Apartment In Westfield
We all face a power outage on occasion. Most of the time, your local utility company will restore power within a couple of hours. However, a large enough natural disaster might leave you with no power for many days or longer.
Your emergency supplies can help you navigate a power outage. But, conditions can become hazardous if you lack heat or AC during harsh temperatures. In this scenario, vulnerable individuals should move to somewhere with power.
Abide By These Cooking And Food Safety Guidelines
Be wary of unsafe food. When losing power, avoid opening your refrigerator and freezer. Generally, food stays safe in an unopened refrigerator for 4 hours and a freezer for 1-2 days after losing power. Use a cooler with ice if you can to keep essential food cool over the initial day of a blackout.
Here’s what you should do if you depart during a power failure at your apartment in Westfield:
- Switch off any devices that may have been operating
- Ask neighbors to inform you when power comes back
- Watch for downed power lines as you depart and contact the power company to report them
What To Do If Your Apartment Floods In Westfield
If you live near a river or flood zone, you might experience a flood after heavy rainfall or if a dam breaks. Watch for news updates and heed issued warnings. If you need to evacuate, adhere to these steps:
- Disconnect all electrical devices that are still dry.
- Swiftly gather your bare necessities or retrieve your emergency go-bag.
- Move essentials and precious items to elevated locations.
- Proceed to a safe locale out of the flood zone.
- Never drive over submerged streets or step into flowing water.
In a worst-case scenario during flash flooding, make every effort to retreat to the highest floor of your building or the rooftop.
How To Respond To An Earthquake In Your Apartment
Even though the Midwest isn’t a hotspot for earthquakes, we experience a bit of rattling on occasion! It doesn’t hurt to know what to do if you have an earthquake in your apartment in Westfield, just to be safe.
As a preparation, store larger and heavier belongings on bottom shelves. Don’t hang anything heavy over beds or sitting areas. Secure tall pieces like bookcases to walls.
When you feel the initial tremors of an earthquake, get to your knees and move to a door frame, next to an interior wall or under a solid piece of furniture. Avoid windows, light fixtures, exterior doors, or anything that may fall. Protect your head with one hand and clutch onto anything stable with the other. If you can grab a pillow, get it over your head.
Whenever you feel the trembling has ended, assess yourself and roomates for injuries. Pay attention to local news outlets for directions and prepare yourself for aftershocks. Survey your close surroundings for risks like gas leaks, fires, or downed power lines. Extinguish fires and disable the gas or power if you it’s possible to do so safely. If there is visible building damage, evacuate as safely and quickly as possible.
Additional Emergency Preparedness Tips For Apartment Residents In Westfield
Disasters can strike at any second. A few extra suggestions can help you handle the unanticipated and stay safe:
- Collaborate with neighbors. Become familiar with other Residents in your building so you have an idea who else might be on site if a crisis unfolds. Discuss what supplies, protected shelter spots, or expertise you can share in emergencies.
- Make sure you carry renters’ insurance.
- Never use an elevator to exit the building during a dangerous situation.
- Know of a safe place to shelter pets if you must evacuate to an emergency relief center.
- If an emergency renders your building unsafe, don’t come back until you are sent a communication from property staff.
- Utilize a handheld radio or mobile phone to locate local resources if you must evacuate.
Your Well-Being And Comfort Matter At Wheelhouse Apartments on the Monon
We have no control over the weather, but we can give you an incredible apartment living experience in Westfield! Wheelhouse Apartments on the Monon is noted for our sought-after amenities, terrific location, open floor plans, and responsive staff. Arrange a tour today and speak with one of our leasing specialists about making Wheelhouse your next home.