Provided

To prepare an emergency preparedness and disaster supplies kit, you will need food and water, matches, pet food and more.

Googling "personal emergency planning" will generate 1.5 million hits. So, where do you start?

A good place is Cornell's Office of Emergency Planning and Recovery (OEPR) interactive Web site (http://www.epr.cornell.edu), a robust, easy-to-navigate place that brings together the latest information about emergency planning at Cornell and surrounding counties as well as comprehensive information on personal emergency planning for individuals, families, pets and the elderly.

"Emergency planning is everyone's responsibility," said Peggy Matta, director of OEPR. "When things seem quiet, it's hard to believe that a disaster can strike, turning your whole world upside down. With preparation, you can go a long way toward protecting yourself and your family, both when you are at work and when you are home."

OEPR's site includes a personal planning guide that lists these basic steps to prepare for an emergency:

• Learn about the hazards and how to prepare for each;
• Talk about the idea of disaster planning with your family;
• Put your plan into action;
• Practice your plan.

Talking through various "what-if" situations helps involve the family in the planning process:

• Consider one of the most common situations -- a power outage with all members home. Suddenly you have no light, no water and no heat. What would you do? How can you prepare?
• Suppose bad weather or a disaster strikes and you are at work, your children at school and other family members out of town. How would you find or connect with each other?
• What if your house is on fire? Are smoke detectors installed? Does everyone in the household know what to do if they hear the smoke detector? Do they know how they would get out? Holding practice fire drills helps children learn how to respond quickly.
• What if you had to evacuate the area? What would you bring? How would you take care of pets? Leaving them in a crate renders them helpless until someone else can reach them. Do you have food for them on hand?

To help individuals answer these questions, the OEPR site also includes:

• links to winter, power outage and fire-safety tips provided by New York state;
• a link to TompkinsREADY, which includes local updates; radio stations; news and information; tips on preparation and safe sheltering, food and water; disasters and hazards; and community involvement.
• a link to the New York Extension Disaster Education Network, which is affiliated with Cornell Cooperative Extension and the national Disaster Education Network, and includes preparedness and recovery guides, information on a variety of emergency situations and what to do for animals in emergencies.
• a link to information and emergency contact numbers for Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Cortland, Schuyler, Seneca, Tioga and Tompkins counties in a one-page format that can easily be printed and taped to a refrigerator door or location near a phone.

Matta advised that once you have your personal emergency plan thought out, you should:

• assemble a disaster supply kit so that you have the resources on hand;
• take time to learn such skills as CPR, first aid and fire extinguisher use; and
• practice your plan.

She noted that when neighbors plan together, they can better help each other should an emergency arise. "People are best prepared when everyone knows what to do, regardless of the situation, whether in a household or in a neighborhood," she said.