Ready for Anything: A Disaster Planning Manual for Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs

PREVENTION AND PREPAREDNESS

The first step in prevention and preparedness is self-assessment. You must take stock of your current situation, considering such factors as location, population, and available resources. Here are some questions to get you started:

• What are the demographics of the young people I serve?
  
  
• What are the physical attributes of my facility?
  
  
• How ready is my staff for an emergency?
  
  
• What supplies and resources do I need?
  
  
• How are my facility’s records maintained?
  
  
• What access to transportation do I have?
  
  
• Where would I go during an evacuation?
  
  
• What disasters would I most likely face?

This section of the manual will walk you through the above questions. At the end of each question, there will be a checklist that breaks down the concrete actions you can take.

What are the demographics of the young people I serve? >>