Most people have some special needs to consider when taking steps to become “disaster prepared.” People who wear contact lenses need to have bottles of solutions and a pair of glasses handy in an emergency, people who are on daily doses of medication need to have an extra prescription on hand for evacuation, and the list goes on. But for people with an ongoing physical disability, here are some basic steps you can take to be even better prepared for a disaster:

Assemble a Kit

Keep a bag, backpack or tote of everything you would need if you had to sustain yourself for a few days without power and water or if you needed to evacuate. Along with the basic items (flashlight, radio, extra batteries, first aid kit, emergency food and water, nonelectric can opener, medicines, cash, I.D., warm clothes and shoes), you’ll want to consider adding any special supplies you need (hearing aid batteries, a glucose test kit, prescription names and dosages, a writing pad and pen if you need to communicate nonverbally with others who don’t use sign language, etc).

If your kit becomes very heavy, separate supplies into two containers. Consider keeping some of these supplies at work, too. If you are visually impaired, keep a cane handy at home and at work (even if you use a service animal, you may want a cane to help you around debris and to identify structural changes around you in case of an earthquake).

Plan for Help in Evacuating

If you think you would need help to evacuate, choose one or two nearby friends or neighbors you trust and ask if they would be willing to look in on you if an evacuation order were given. In the workplace, remind your coworkers if you might need help leaving the building in the case of debris or if you are not able to hear alarms or warnings. At home, make a plan for how you would get out of your house, write it down in detail (including where you keep your disaster kit) and give your friend or neighbor a copy.

If you need a wheelchair, oxygen unit, or other equipment, be sure to write down where you keep it and include instructions to bring it along. Your chosen helper(s) will need a key to let themselves into your home, too. If you need help shutting off the electricity or gas in an emergency, be sure to put the locations for those utilities in your written instructions.

If you depend on dialysis or other life-sustaining equipment or treatments, know where any back-up facilities might be located. If you have a service animal, keep extra food and water handy for sheltering in place or for evacuation. Take into account the possibility that the animal may become confused in an emergency. If you have a speech, hearing or language disability, keep paper, pen and a flashlight (to signal others) handy. When you dial 911, tap the space bar to indicate a TDD call.

Being prepared for a disaster always comes down to the same thing for everyone: think ahead of what might happen and what you might need. Then take the steps to address those concerns, notify others of your plan and then practice, refill, or re-evaluate your plan and kit occasionally.

For more information on disaster preparedness for people with disabilities, contact the Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management at (907) 262-4910, the American Red Cross office on the Kenai Peninsula at (907) 283-4556 or go to the FEMA Web site at www.fema.gov.

Kim Lorentzen is the former Citizen Corps program coordinator for the Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management. She continues to participate in the program as a Citizen Corps Council member, as well as by occasionally writing emergency preparedness newspaper articles.