Officials stress importance of knowing what to do if disaster strikes

September marks National Preparedness Month, and officials can't stress enough the importance of knowing ahead of time what to do if disaster strikes.
According to officials, you'll want to ask yourself some questions such as how will I receive emergency alerts and warnings, and what is my shelter plan, and what is my evacuation route?
Officials also encourage to have an emergency kit ready should you need to evacuate.
The kid should include enough water and non-perishable food for three days, baby formula, if needed, and medications, as well as flashlights, batteries, maps and cellphones.
When putting together your plan, you should take into consideration factors such as ages of your family members, dietary needs, medical needs, and pets.
Meanwhile, Stamford-based Americares is now juggling relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and preparations for Irma.
The disaster relief organization continues to ship water, medicine, and medical supplies to Texas, and currently has 10 people on the ground in the state.
Americares is now deploying a small team to Puerto Rico ahead of Hurricane Irma.
It is also in contact with the organization's office in Haiti and may have to extend its efforts to Florida depending on Irma's path.
"Not in a very long time have we had to face two such dangerous hurricanes at the same time," says Garrett Ingoglia with Americares. "One, we are sort of still in response mode. The other is now bearing down Puerto Rico."
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