Tips to Get Your Family 9-1-1 Ready

Is your family 9-1-1 ready? 5 Smart 9-1-1 Tips
April is 9-1-1 Education month and a great reminder to discuss calling 9-1-1 with your family. It isn't enough to teach your children how to dial 9-1-1. To ensure you get the fastest and most efficient response from 9-1-1, include the five following smart 9-1-1 tips.

1. Call only in the event of a real emergency. You should call 9-1-1 in any serious situation where a law enforcement officer, fire fighter, or emergency medical help is needed right away. If you are unsure of whether your situation is an emergency, call 9-1-1. The 9-1-1 call taker can determine if you need emergency assistance and can route you to the correct location.

2. Know your location. Your location is the most important piece of information you can offer to 9-1-1 call takers. Currently, mobile phone calls to 9-1-1 only provide a general location, not an exact address. By providing the exact location of the incident, first responders will know where to respond. If you are unsure of your address, describe your surroundings and use landmarks to help them locate you.

3. DON'T hang up. Stay on the line and tell the call taker your call was an accident so they can record it in their system. If you hang up before speaking to them, 9-1-1 won't know whether you are in danger or need assistance and will automatically dispatch help to check on the situation. This can waste valuable resources for other people who are experiencing emergencies.

4. Pay attention to the questions asked and speak clearly. Calling 9-1-1 in an emergency situation can be very stressful and cause you to panic. It is important to listen carefully to the call taker's questions and provide information as it is requested. Even if you feel that you have repeated yourself, the call taker must ask questions to verify the accuracy of the information and can better assist as soon as they are answered.

5. Create and maintain a Smart911 Safety Profile. Visit www.smart911.com to give 9-1-1 valuable information about yourself, family members, your home, pets, and even vehicles that will automatically display on the 9-1-1 call taker's screen when you make an emergency call. It's private and secure and you control what information is in your profile. These details can save valuable seconds or even minutes during an emergency.

Remember these tips and celebrate 9-1-1 Education month at https://www.smart911.com/911challenge to be better prepared for any emergency your family may face.

Katharine Farrell helps citizens be smart about safety and educates communities nationwide about the importance of creating a Smart911 Safety Profile.

The picture above is courtesy of Safety 9-1-1 and Katharine Farrell and can be found here.

Keeping Safe This Halloween

Yes it is that time of the year. Halloween costumes. Halloween candy. Halloween parties. It's that time of the year when even those of us who are on diets, will "splurge" and "cheat." Many of the holidays, like Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, are more solemn and are not seen as mainly "fun" holidays. But holidays like Halloween are. Yet the potential and the pitfalls on "fun" days like this are many. It is not for nothing that Halloween has been called "the Devil's holiday." Many children and families come out at night to "trick or treat." So do predators and they are hard to identify. Many, for religious reasons, choose not to celebrate Halloween, and I don't blame them at all! For many, Halloween is a hard time, especially those who have lost children to having gone missing, or to death. Survivors of something called satanic ritual abuse also find this to be a hard time. Children with sensory issues due to autism or a related disorder, also find Halloween tough because they dislike the sounds, lights and smells of it all. Many single people may also struggle with especially acute feelings of loneliness at this time of the year.

Yes, I know that many adults also celebrate Halloween and there's nothing wrong with that, as long as it is good, clean, safe fun. I know of some who do. I, who am based in St. Louis, Missouri, consider "splurging" on pizza from Pizza Hut to be celebrating, as I enjoy Pizza Hut pizza. My mom and her boyfriend went to a Halloween party the other night and were asked to wear costumes. I know of others who have, too. I know that the bars will no doubt be packed with people tonight. Yet we know that at this time of year, many people, children included, turn up missing. Many may see all the witches, ghosts, goblins, vampires, and warlocks costumes to be just innocent fun, but can these open the door to evil? Can these put "trick or treaters" at risk of something called satanic oppression, even bodily harm due to being preyed on, even the unthinkable?

No, I'm not one of those who wants to take the fun out of anyone's Halloween. People who don't celebrate usually don't wish to take the fun out of that day and probably have other ways, if they have young children, of offering wholesome alternatives to their children. It is possible to keep your children and yourself safe and having fun, believe it or not, whether you celebrate Halloween or not. You may be one who has already participated in Halloween parties or events that have already been held, including through churches or through your places of employment.

So what are the best ways to keep your children and yourselves safe if you plan to go out tonight?

First, I know that many children are going out tonight to "trick or treat." I would assume that every child would be attended by a parent or another trusted adult. Children alone are easy prey for predators at any time or day during the year. On Halloween, they probably are even more vulnerable. Also, don't go in to the homes of people you don't know. I'm sure most of you know this. I don't want to insult anyone's intelligence. And when you get home safely with your children, you still need to ensure their safety. You need to check their candy. If it looks suspicious or if in doubt, throw it out! It is better to be safe than sorry. Also, people love to hand out lollipops and Tootsie Rolls. Aside from their total lack of any nutritional value, these hard or gummy candies are choking hazards. I recommend throwing them out. If you go out as adults, it is strongly recommended That you go out in groups and stay together. There is a campaign called "You Came Together? You Leave Together!" and at LostNMissing, Inc., you can learn more about how you can keep your friends and neighbors safe.

And please don't forget those who don't see this time of the year as "fun." Whether survivors of satanic ritual abuse, those with sensory processing issues, those with missing or deceased children, many lonely individuals, and those who don't believe in Halloween for religious reasons. Feel free to enjoy this day but don't "show it off" to those who would be offended by it. You need to do all those things that can keep yourself and your children safe.

Bottom line: Have a safe, clean and fun Halloween!

Photo courtesy of MorgueFile.com.
Photo by cohdra.

This photo can be found here.