Halloween is one of my all-time favorite holidays. I love all the planning, decorating, and carving… and of course the pumpkin seeds.
But in the excitement over costumes and candies, it’s easy to forget Halloween Safety.
Whether you’re headed out with the trick-or-treaters or manning the door to pass out candy at your home, we’ve put together some safety reminders:
For trick-or-treating with children:
Make sure all swords, play knives, or similar costume accessories are soft, short, and flexible
Never let children trick-or-treat alone. Make sure they are walking in groups with a trusted adult.
Map out a safe route with your kids so you know where they will be
Set a designated time for them to return home or check in with you
If you are trick-or-treating with children, make sure you have enough other adults with you to keep a headcount as you go
Fasten reflective tapes to costumes and bags to help drivers see trick-or-treaters – the brighter the costumes, the better!
Attach your child’s name, address, and phone number somewhere inside their costume
Look both ways before crossing the street!
If possible, cross at a crosswalk or a corner. If traveling with a group of trick-or-treaters, have them link hands when crossing
Try to walk on sidewalks as much as possible. If you have to walk along the edge of the road, stay as far to the edge as possible and walk facing traffic
Carry a flashlight with you—and give one to each child–to help you and others see
Encourage kids to walk from house to house, never run
Check to make sure kids are wearing well-fitted masks (or better yet- face paint!), costumes and shoes to avoid tripping or blocking your vision
Check over treats before letting kids start eating them- check to make sure they are still commercially wrapped and not tampered with and that they do not present a choking hazard
Always test make-up in a small area first to check for allergies before applying it to large areas like the face. Be sure to remove all makeup before bedtime to prevent skin and eye irritation
Remind kids:
Enter homes only if you are with a trusted adult.
Only visit well-lit homes
Never accept rides from strangers
Never walk near lit candles or luminaries. Be aware of tails, long trains, and other dragging costume accessories when near jack-o-lanterns or other decorations with active flames.
Harmless pranks are often a part of Halloween. Make sure you explain that while you want them to have a good time, some tricks could hurt other people or vandalize property
Provide kids with a substantial, healthy meal to help cut back candy consumption
To prepare your home for trick-or-treaters
Make sure the outside areas of your home, especially the walking area and stairs, are well-lit and free of obstacles
Be sure to turn on all your exterior lights
Keep candle-lit jack-o-lanterns and luminaries away from doorsteps, walkways, landings, and curtains. Place them on sturdy tables, keep them out of the reach of pets and small children, and never leave them unattended. Use battery-operated candles in any outdoor or child-accessible decorations
Drive slowly all evening!
Keep pets away from the door so they don’t scare—or get scared by—trick-or-treaters.
Report any suspicious or criminal activity to your local police or sheriff’s department
Make sure you do not pass out candy that is a choking hazard to younger children
As Hurricane Sandy whirls her way ashore–teaming up with winter storm conditions and a full moon as she does so–it’s becoming more and more clear that this storm has the potential to be extremely dangerous and damaging to communities all along the East Coast.
As Sandy begins to make landfall, we want to make sure all those affected know where to get up-to-date, reliable information regarding evacuations, weather updates, and other emergency information.
Here are some emergency resources:
This Google Crisis Map tracks Sandy’s progress, providing forecast tracks, current locations and active emergency shelter locations. Access the map here: Google Crisis Map.
For the latest updates on Hurricane Sandy from the National Hurricane Center, click here.
For a map of the latest warnings and advisories from the National Hurricane Center, click here.
For state-specific information, click on YOUR state below:
If you lose power or Internet signal and need to access Twitter to get Emergency Information, click here for tips on how to do so with your phone. For the Huffington Post’s suggestions on the Best Storm Tracker Apps, click here. We recommend following @FEMA to stay informed.
Halloween is less than a week away… but on the East Coast, something far scarier is brewing.
As Hurricane Sandy sets her sites on our shores, meteorologists warn that the hurricane conditions could mix with a winter storm to create a hybrid superstorm.
Due to the storm’s hybrid nature, and its Halloween-timed landfall, news agencies have dubbed it…
The Frankenstorm.
but for every Frankenstorm, we of course need…
Frankensafety.
But… how exactly does one prepare for a storm that is an unprecedented mix of both winter and hurricane conditions?
We thought you might ask.
Since reports are all over the map–with some saying the storm will be a dud and others calling it the storm of the century–we’re going with the prepare for all possibilities plan.
Frankenstorm is a two-headed beast. So below are some safety and preparation tips to tackle both hurricane safety and winter storm safety ‘head on.’
Hurricane Safety Tips:
Build an emergency kit. Tips for building the kit can be found here
Learn the elevation of your property and whether it is flood-prone
Study community hurricane evacuation routes
Know where you would go if a hurricane hit
Make a plan on how to evacuate. A downloadable Family Emergency Plan can be found here. Print it off and complete it.
Practice your plan
Develop a plan for your pet. A great list of steps and supplies from the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) can be found here.
Don’t forget about your business. Hurricane preparation does not end at home. Here is a great Business Survival Plan from the National Hurricane Survival Initiative
Pay attention to the news. Know the guidelines of when you should evacuate and when you should stay. A good guide from the National Hurricane Survival Initiative can be found here.
Cover all your home’s windows.
Brush up on your watches and warning terms. That way, you’ll understand the risk and can better make safety and evacuation decisions. A good review from FLASH can be found here.
Install straps or clips to securely fasten your roof to your frame structure to reduce wind damage
Keep trees well-trimmed
Clear loose or clogged rain gutters
Reinforce your garage doors
Bring in ALL outdoor furniture, decorations, garbage cans and similar items that are not tied down
If you live in a high rise, prepare to take shelter on or below the 10th floor
Add these winter-storm specific items to your existing kit:
Rock salt or other products to melt ice on walkways. Here’s a list of recommended products from the EPA.
Sand to improve traction
Snow shovels and snow removal equipment
Heating fuel in case you lose power. Be sure to store good, dry wood for your fireplace or stove
Adequate clothing and blankets to keep you warm
Read, print off, and laminate this Red Cross Storm Safety Checklist. Make sure you have a safety plan, and that you review it with your children
If it gets cold and you want to use a heater, be SURE to read these safety tips! Portable heaters cause fires!
Review these tips for pet safety during a winter storm
Minimize travel. One of the most dangerous places during a snow storm is roadways. If you can, stay inside.
Listen to the radio and be aware of changing weather conditions. To brush up on your winter snow storm terms, click here.
This Frankenstorm has the potential to be dangerous and deadly. Please protect yourself, your family and your home. Review your safety and preparedness plan BEFORE the storm hits.
(And in the meantime, we’ll hope it’s just like all those bad horror movies: All hype, no scare.)
But each of these stories also highlights a growing trend on our national response to bullies. Rather than join in on the criticism, we have come together to say that this behavior will not stand.
The community rallied around that Homecoming Queen, cheering the high school girl on as she took the Homecoming stage looking gorgeous and confident in her red dress. We wrote hundreds of letters to that TV anchor, reminding her that she is so much more than her weight. We applauded the blogger for not only confronting the teen who made him fear for his life, but for forgiving him.
And it wasn’t just us who took a stand. It was the victims themselves. Rather than let those bullies get away with their behavior, they spoke up. And then they spoke out. They sounded the alarm that this behavior was going on, then they stood up for themselves.
When Leo Trayner, a blogger in the UK, met the 17-year-old man who had threatened his wife and family, he had this to say to him:
Look at me. I’m a middle-aged man with a limp and a wheeze and a son and a wife that I love. I’m not just a little avatar of an eye. You’re better than this. You have a name of your own. Be proud of it.
And you know what? His story went viral. 913 people commented on his story, applauded him for his bravery and thanking him for speaking up.
When Whitney Kropp, the 16-year-old who was nominated for Homecoming Queen as a cruel joke, spoke of her abuse, she told other victims of bullying:
Stand up for what you believe in and go with your heart and go with your gut. That’s what I did, and look at me now. I’m just as happy as can be! I can just prove all these kids wrong … I’m not the joke everyone thinks I am.
And Jennifer Livingston, the news anchor attacked for her weight, had this to say–on air–to every single person who has ever been hurt by the words of others:
To all of the children out there who feel lost, who are struggling with your weight, with the color of your skin, your sexual preference, your disability, even the acne on your face, listen to me right now: Do not let your self-worth be defined by bullies. Learn from my experience — that the cruel words of one are nothing compared to the shouts of many.
These three brave individuals teach us so much about bullying. They show that:
Bullying affects people of all ages and types
Victims of bullying are not alone
Victims of bullies have nothing to be ashamed of– it is the bullies who bare the blame
Standing up and speaking out will help not just you, but all of us, overcome bullying
Bullies do not define who we are. We do.
Standing up to bullies is hard, but once you do, you’ll have your community behind you for support
Bullying is a national issue. It’s not a teen issue, a school issue, or an Internet issue.
It’s an everyone issue.
We’ve made progress, but we still have a long way to go. There are still people out there–of all ages, from all walks of life–that deal with bullies every day. We still have victims of bullying who suffer in silence.
So this National Bullying Prevention Month, may we rise to the challenge. May victims of bullying everywhere feel the courage and support to stand up and speak out. And may we stand up to support and heal them when they do.
Just how important is making sure your child is buckled in correctly to an age and size appropriate car seat?
On average, 2 children are killed and 325 are injured in car accidents every day.* This fatality rate could be reduced by about half if the correct child safety seats were always used.**
So how can you check to make sure you are using the correct car seat in the correct way for your child?
Check out these great recommendations for car seats and boosters as well as installation and maintenance tips.
To make sure your child’s seat is the correct one installed in the correct way, you should have it inspected by a certified technician. Often, these certifications are free. You can find a location close to you by clicking here.
We also wanted to share a great tip with you that we found and shared on our Firefighter Pinterest board. It started with this photo:
In this photo, you can see the parent has attached Emergency Contact and Medical Information.
When we found this Pin, it was shared by a Firefighter/Paramedic. He commented that this kind of information is critical in the event of a car crash. In case the driver is separated from the child or otherwise unable to communicate medical information to First Responders, securing vital information to a car seat will help provide EMTs with potentially life-saving information.
While some newer car seats come with a spot for this information, many do not. Even if your child’s car seat does not have a specific spot for this info, you can secure it to the seat yourself.Simply write up the information (we recommend using bright or neon paper so it’s more noticeable) and use waterproof, clear tape to secure it to your car seat.
Here are some suggestions on what to include:
Child’s Name
Date of Birth
Parent Identification and Contact Information (Names and Phone Numbers)
Emergency Contact Information (Name and Phone Number)
Primary Physician/Pediatrician Information
Any known medical conditions
Any known allergies
Any relevant medical information
No matter how safe of a driver you are, remember that there are other drivers on the road and that accidents happen every day. Help safeguard your child’s safety by having your car seat inspected and by securing contact and medical information to your child’s car seat.
Sources:
*Based on National Highways Traffic Safety Administration c2010 Crash Data
**Based on the latest mortality data currently available from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics
Whether it’s a fender bender or a pileup, your fault or someone else’s, they just happen.
So when we talk about preparedness during National Preparedness Month, car wrecks should be on your list of scenarios for which you are prepared and ready.
Because how you act following a car wreck won’t just affect the Insurance Claims process, it could affect the safety and security of yourself, your property and your identity.
Did you know that sharing some personal information could put you at risk for identity theft following a car accident?
Thirty-eight percent of consumers believed they should share their driver’s license number with the other driver — one in six would even allow the other driver to photograph the license as a convenient way to exchange information.
So what’s the risk? Many retailers accept driver’s license information to verify your identity over the phone. In fact, your license number is the most common way to confirm your identity after Social Security number and date of birth.
Twenty-five percent of consumers surveyed said they would share their home address.
So what’s the risk? Actually, your home address gives identity thieves the physical location of your mail or garbage, the first place criminals often look for personal financial information. And, now a stranger knows where you live, possibly putting your personal safety at risk.
Twenty-nine percent of survey respondents believed they are required to share personal phone numbers. In fact, sharing your phone number is rarely necessary.
To help you take some of the guesswork out of what to share and what to safeguard following an accident, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners released an app for Smartphones called The WreckCheck App.
It’s free of charge!
Works for iPhones and Android phones
Outlines what to do following an accident
Walks you through process of creating accident reports
Tells you which pictures to take
Helps document damage
Assists in attaining and sharing only necessary information
