Evacuating your home during an emergency is a stressful and complex experience, accompanied by uncertainty and a sense of confusion. The journey to a safe place may be long and unfamiliar, and often without sufficient preparation beforehand. Therefore, it’s important to equip yourself with items that will ease the evacuation process and help you settle into a safe location.
For this purpose, we have prepared a guide for people with disabilities: what to take with you when you are forced to leave your home during an emergency. We highly recommend preparing an emergency evacuation kit in advance, based on the following list, which will help you organize and cope effectively during the evacuation.
- Personal Documents: Originals and copies within reach
- Passports
- ID cards
- Medical documents and prescriptions / List of medications and required medical equipment
- Information:
- Contact details of relatives – names, addresses, telephone numbers
- Contact details of the place to which you are vacating
- Telephone numbers and addresses of aid organizations
- Photos of the evacuees
- Important questions or information about you, write on a page in case of difficulty in communication
- Equipment
- Money – convert cash into the currency of the destination country, credit cards
- Keys to the house and car
- Phone, mobile charger cable
- Portable charger
- Flashlight
- Scissors
- Clothing appropriate for the weather in both the origin and destination countries
- At least one water bottle per person
- Food and snacks
- Medications
- Regular medications – a supply for at least two weeks
- Pain relievers
- First aid: alcohol and disinfectants, band-aids, elastic bandages
- Personal medical equipment (e.g., blood sugar monitor, inhaler, blood pressure monitor, etc.)
- Hygiene
- Diapers for adults/children
- Toothbrushes and toothpaste
- Deodorant
- Wet wipes
- Toilet paper
- Sanitary pads/tampons
- Accessories for People with Physical Disabilities:
- Regular/wheelchair / motorized scooter, preferably with a flat tire repair kit
- Charger for the wheelchair
- Walking cane/walker
- Accessories for People with Visual Impairments:
- White cane
- Spare contact lenses / spare glasses
- Magnifying aids you commonly use – magnifying glass, binoculars, etc., Be My Eye app
- Accessories for People with Hearing Impairments:
- Hearing aids + charger or batteries
- Various hearing aids you use
- Notebook and pen
- Tag indicating that communication mediation is required
- Accessories for People with Cognitive/Communication/Mental Disabilities:
- Comfort item
- AAC board (Alternative and Augmentative Communication) and charger
- Communication tablet if available and charger
- Noise-canceling headphones
- Tag or bracelet indicating that communication mediation is required
- White noise machine if necessary
- For Guide Dog/Service Animal Users:
- Drinking bowls
- Food
- Leash/harness
- Muzzle if necessary
- Carrying crate
- Dog socks to prevent stepping on broken glass
- Documents Recommended to Back Up in the Cloud in Advance:
- Photos
- Information on bank accounts, savings, investments
- Birth certificates
- ID cards