WEBVTT

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Contemplating what to do in an emergency is never easy,

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but it's a lot harder to figure things out

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while the situation is happening.

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Being prepared ahead of time can make all the difference.

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In this episode, Hadley's Chief Program Officer, Ed Haines,

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joins us as we discuss emergency preparedness.

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I'm Ricky Enger,

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and this is "Hadley Presents."

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(pensive music)

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Before we continue with today's episode,

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we wanna acknowledge

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that we often record shows weeks in advance

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of their release.

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In this case,

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just days after recording the episode you're about to hear,

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Hurricane Helene brought significant devastation

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to areas within the southeastern United States.

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And as this episode is set to air,

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another hurricane is expected to make landfall in Florida.

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If you're looking for ways to help

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or if you're in the affected areas

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and you need assistance finding resources,

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please check our show notes for links,

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including disasterassistance.gov

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for information on available support.

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Or you can call Hadley at 800-323-4238,

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and we'll do our best to connect you

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with the help you need.

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And now, we return to our originally recorded episode.

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Welcome to the show, Ed.

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Thanks Ricky, it's a pleasure to be here.

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Yeah, it's really good to have you.

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It always is,

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although we're not talking about warm

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and happy stuff today.
No.

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I do actually think, though, that it does feel good,

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or there's a sense of relief, at least,

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to have certain things figured out ahead of time

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to be able to mark off the list and say,

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"I may not know everything,

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but at least I have some ideas of what to do

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if this particular thing happens."

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Yeah, very true.

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So yeah, that's what we're going to talk about today

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is emergency preparedness.

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So just thinking about what you will do

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when something unexpected happens.

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And it was interesting as we discussed this

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because at first, it was like,

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"Well isn't this a universal thing?

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Like if you've watched the news

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or you've read articles about what to do in an emergency,

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you probably know what you need to."

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But I'm not so sure that's true.

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As we were discussing things,

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are there some extra logistics

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that vision loss brings to the table

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as you're thinking about how to prepare?

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Yeah, that's a great question, Ricky.

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And I should say that for many years,

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in my earlier days at Hadley,

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I taught a course called Safety in the Home.

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And it was about emergency preparedness.

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And I know that emergency preparedness

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involves a lot of common knowledge and general knowledge.

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We think we know a lot about it,

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but there is a facet of emergency preparedness

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that people with disabilities,

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or people with vision loss particularly,

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have to think about.

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And that is, is that in our everyday life,

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we have a reasonable expectation

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of accommodation in public places and services.

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Those expectations, as we know,

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are not always met.
Yeah.

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But we have an expectation of them.

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In an emergency, in a natural disaster,

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basically the ADA flies out the window,

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the Americans with Disabilities Act.

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We honestly won't have any reasonable expectation

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of accommodation in public places or services.

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People who are normally designated to help us out

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are going to be busy or non-existent.

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Places that normally provide accessible resources to us

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may not be either reachable or they just may be gone.

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So there's the...

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It's incumbent on folks to be as knowledgeable as possible

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about what resources they're going to have

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in case of a natural disaster and where to find them.

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So, it's all about prior planning and knowledge is power.

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And that's especially true if you have vision loss.

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Yeah, that makes sense,

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'cause if you're in a situation

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where it's every person for themself,

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you have to know what you need and either where to find it

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or maybe how to very succinctly ask for it, right?

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Because if people are busy and they're overwhelmed,

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it helps if you can voice what your needs are

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and then figure out if they can get met.

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That's very true, and as much as possible,

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to be as independent and self-sufficient as you can

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for meeting those needs.

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There's a couple things you can do right off the bat

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that can make a huge difference.

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The first thing is, is that a lot of places where we live,

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the risk level for natural disasters

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has changed in recent years.

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That's due to a number of environmental circumstances.

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But areas that are previously

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that weren't vulnerable to flooding

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or weren't vulnerable to fires now are.

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Yeah.
So if you need to know

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your neighborhood and your area's risk level,

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it may have changed.

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So, find out what that is.

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And then if your vision has changed recently

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and you've been comfortable with that risk level

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prior to vision loss,

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ask yourself honestly.

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Okay, I live in an area

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that it is prone to intermittent flooding.

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That was okay with me when my vision was typical

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because I knew I'd be able to cope.

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Well, now that I've lost some vision, is that still okay?

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Am I confident

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that I can still do what I need to do to survive

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in the case of the next flood?

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So, know your area's risk level

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and then know your own capacity to be comfortable with that.

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The second thing you can do right out of the gate

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is almost every municipality,

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every county in the United States

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has some sort of emergency management coordinator.

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And it doesn't hurt to know who that entity is,

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if it's a group or a single person,

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and to make yourself known to that entity,

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and to ask them questions ahead of time, like:

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What are your plans if my street floods?

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Where are we in terms of priority for rescue, et cetera?

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And if you belong to a peer support group,

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a vision loss support group,

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if there's a local emergency management coordinator,

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in my experience,

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those individuals are more than happy

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to come to talk to your group

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and sort of educate you as a community.

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So, it doesn't hurt to find out who that entity is

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and try to engage with them.

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Yeah, that's a really good point

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and one that I hadn't really thought about.

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So, that's going on my list as well.

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And I've been in my neighborhood for a number of years

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and just hadn't considered it.

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So, the more you know.

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When we are watching the news, it's hurricane season here,

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so this comes up a lot right now.

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And they always say, "Make sure that you have your go-bag,

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or your bug-out bag,

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or whatever it is that you're calling it.

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Make sure you have that ready."

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And so I'm wondering if there are things beyond,

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I guess, just the traditional stuff that you should have:

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food, water, maybe a change of clothing,

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some hygiene items, stuff like that.

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What beyond those things should we think about

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with vision loss?

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Does that change how we prepare these go-bags?

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I think it might.

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People with vision loss often use adaptive aids

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to make sure that they can do whatever they need to do.

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And I'm talking about magnifiers,

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canes.
Right, yeah.

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Even mobile devices.

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So, if you can afford to or if you have the ability to,

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it doesn't hurt to have extras of some of those things,

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like an at least an extra cane

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or extra magnifiers if you're using them.

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If you are someone with hearing loss

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and you have a hearing aid, you use a hearing aid,

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they're often very expensive.

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But if you have a cheaper version,

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doesn't hurt to pack one of those.

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So, if you can have duplicates

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of some of those critical adaptive aids

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that you use to accommodate your vision,

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I would recommend packing those.

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Yeah, and that can be hard if you're...

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It's like you said, it's hard enough to afford one of them,

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but the approach I tend to take is for my cane, for example,

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I have an old beat-up one that's still functional.

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I wouldn't use it for daily use,

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but it is still good enough for, well, in an emergency,

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and I guess the same could be true for magnifiers.

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Maybe you've got that drawer full of stuff

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and you have the one that,

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"This doesn't work for me every day,

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but in a pinch it's still gonna give me what I need," right?

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Yeah, exactly.

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And in my experience,

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folks usually have a drawer full of magnifiers.

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Yeah.
So,

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since we're talking about magnifiers,

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it also needs to be said

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that most of those have integrated lighting with them.

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They're lighted magnifiers.
Right.

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So, batteries are gonna be critical as well.

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If you have an old magnifier

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that you want to include in your to-go-bag,

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it wouldn't hurt to keep some extra batteries for that,

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especially if those batteries

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have been sitting in there a long time,

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it's likely that they're going to be worn out.

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Yeah.

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What about other technology?

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We talked about mobile phones,

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and I will be the first to say

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that I depend on my phone a lot,

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but are there things that we should be thinking through?

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If I'm depending on my iPhone for everything,

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is that gonna be sufficient for me

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to grab that during an emergency,

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or are there some other things I should consider?

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Well, that's a good question,

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because phones are only as good as cellular networks.

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Right.
And data services, right?

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Now, if those are disrupted,

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if your power's out and your router's not working,

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or cell towers are down

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and you're not getting a signal,

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a lot of the apps that you might use,

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particularly for navigation and communication,

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are no longer gonna be sufficient.

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So, it's not a bad idea

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just to be honest about your dependency on tech,

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if you use a lot of tech to accommodate your vision loss.

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And if you can think of workarounds for that tech,

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they may not be as convenient,

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they may not be as easy to use.

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It's not a bad idea to have a list of those in your head.

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And if you haven't done that in a while, to practice them,

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I'll just give you an example, for instance.

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If you're using your phone for navigation

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or GPS, for instance,

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can you use a Braille compass or a talking compass?

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There's other ways to make sure you know where north, south,

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east, and west are.

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And that may be really critical when you hear on the radio,

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"Okay, everybody head south

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because the disaster is approaching from the north,"

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so-
Right, yeah.

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Yeah, so if you are dependent on tech,

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we all are right now,

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but if there are ways that you can do things without tech

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that you can have as a backup,

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that's not a bad idea to have those handy

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and have that knowledge handy.

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Yeah, I think that's good advice no matter what,

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because tech is as good as its battery

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in a lot of cases-
Right.

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And it might not be an emergency,

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but being out and about and suddenly you're without it,

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like, "Hmm, do I have those backup skills?"

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So yeah, that's important.

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What about things like figuring out what's in your go-bag?

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Maybe you've thrown a lot of stuff in there,

266
00:12:03.720 --> 00:12:05.280
and now you're pulling things out

267
00:12:05.280 --> 00:12:07.830
and all these packages feel the same.

268
00:12:07.830 --> 00:12:11.220
What is going to help with that sort of thing?

269
00:12:11.220 --> 00:12:12.420
Organization, really.

270
00:12:12.420 --> 00:12:15.600
And when someone loses vision,

271
00:12:15.600 --> 00:12:17.220
usually they find out pretty quick

272
00:12:17.220 --> 00:12:19.410
that being organized is a big help

273
00:12:19.410 --> 00:12:21.990
in terms of just getting things done

274
00:12:21.990 --> 00:12:24.510
and getting things done as quickly as you used to.

275
00:12:24.510 --> 00:12:27.510
And that's true for anything in your go-bag,

276
00:12:27.510 --> 00:12:29.610
particularly if you have food items

277
00:12:29.610 --> 00:12:31.920
and different types of bandages

278
00:12:31.920 --> 00:12:33.510
or whatever you decide to put in there.

279
00:12:33.510 --> 00:12:35.790
And there are lots of lists out there, by the way,

280
00:12:35.790 --> 00:12:37.350
for what to put in a go-bag.
Right.

281
00:12:37.350 --> 00:12:39.120
But, they should be labeled in a way

282
00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:41.550
that you can quickly, not just slowly,

283
00:12:41.550 --> 00:12:43.230
but quickly access them

284
00:12:43.230 --> 00:12:46.110
and get exactly what you need right away.

285
00:12:46.110 --> 00:12:47.520
So you need to label them in a way

286
00:12:47.520 --> 00:12:50.100
that you can identify them easily,

287
00:12:50.100 --> 00:12:51.690
either with large print or Braille.

288
00:12:51.690 --> 00:12:54.540
You may be having to look through that bag in the dark,

289
00:12:54.540 --> 00:12:57.330
and if your vision is limited anyway

290
00:12:57.330 --> 00:12:58.410
and light's not so good,

291
00:12:58.410 --> 00:13:02.160
you need to find a bandage really quick or an aspirin,

292
00:13:02.160 --> 00:13:04.830
have them labeled in some way that you can find them

293
00:13:04.830 --> 00:13:06.120
or organized in some way

294
00:13:06.120 --> 00:13:09.540
that you can put your hand on them right away.

295
00:13:09.540 --> 00:13:10.890
Yeah, that makes sense.

296
00:13:10.890 --> 00:13:13.667
I was talking to someone recently,

297
00:13:13.667 --> 00:13:18.667
and she mentioned even having a roll of tape or something,

298
00:13:20.640 --> 00:13:25.640
where if you are away for a little longer than a night,

299
00:13:26.700 --> 00:13:28.560
or a day, or whatever it is,

300
00:13:28.560 --> 00:13:33.390
having ways to mark things that you get

301
00:13:33.390 --> 00:13:35.100
that may not be in your go-bag,

302
00:13:35.100 --> 00:13:37.230
maybe you're in a hotel or something like that,

303
00:13:37.230 --> 00:13:39.930
and you need to label the shampoo and conditioner.

304
00:13:39.930 --> 00:13:43.380
Just something that you can use

305
00:13:43.380 --> 00:13:46.020
to mark things that aren't marked already,

306
00:13:46.020 --> 00:13:48.660
whether that's a 20/20 pen

307
00:13:48.660 --> 00:13:51.330
or, again, a roll of tape or what have you.

308
00:13:51.330 --> 00:13:53.460
So yeah, there's a lot you can do.

309
00:13:53.460 --> 00:13:57.570
What about things like meds, and eye drops,

310
00:13:57.570 --> 00:13:58.403
and things like that?

311
00:13:58.403 --> 00:14:00.540
Are there any special things we should think about,

312
00:14:00.540 --> 00:14:05.010
or just kind of knowing that you're gonna need some on hand?

313
00:14:05.010 --> 00:14:08.098
Well, I guess yes to both of those questions.

314
00:14:08.098 --> 00:14:11.430
If you've lost vision because of diabetes or glaucoma,

315
00:14:11.430 --> 00:14:14.670
then it's possible that you are taking medication

316
00:14:14.670 --> 00:14:16.890
for both of those conditions,

317
00:14:16.890 --> 00:14:19.530
and you're gonna want replacements for those.

318
00:14:19.530 --> 00:14:21.720
If, particularly with regard to diabetes,

319
00:14:21.720 --> 00:14:26.520
if you are using regularly a blood sugar meter test strips,

320
00:14:26.520 --> 00:14:27.475
things like that,

321
00:14:27.475 --> 00:14:29.550
you'll need to have replacements for those,

322
00:14:29.550 --> 00:14:33.930
or at least have a place in your to-go-bag for those things.

323
00:14:33.930 --> 00:14:35.580
Eye drops for glaucoma.

324
00:14:35.580 --> 00:14:37.320
There's some medications that you might need

325
00:14:37.320 --> 00:14:38.370
to actually keep cold,

326
00:14:38.370 --> 00:14:40.170
so then you'll have to have a cooler on hand

327
00:14:40.170 --> 00:14:43.110
and a supply of ice or some kind of coolant

328
00:14:43.110 --> 00:14:45.090
to keep that stuff at the right temperature.

329
00:14:45.090 --> 00:14:47.430
So yeah, I think there are some considerations.

330
00:14:47.430 --> 00:14:50.730
If you've lost vision due to a medical condition

331
00:14:50.730 --> 00:14:55.650
that does require you to keep track of medication levels,

332
00:14:55.650 --> 00:14:58.110
and sugar levels, and that kind of thing.

333
00:14:58.110 --> 00:15:00.253
Makes sense, yeah.

334
00:15:00.253 --> 00:15:03.150
A lot of what we've talked about so far

335
00:15:03.150 --> 00:15:06.030
is very physical, tangible stuff.

336
00:15:06.030 --> 00:15:10.650
So, various items and various things that you can touch,

337
00:15:10.650 --> 00:15:12.630
or mark, or see, or whatever.
Yep.

338
00:15:12.630 --> 00:15:17.630
But I think information is equally as important

339
00:15:17.850 --> 00:15:21.630
as the devices or items that you carry with you.

340
00:15:21.630 --> 00:15:23.937
So, I'm wondering if we can just talk

341
00:15:23.937 --> 00:15:28.440
about the kinds of info that you should have on hand

342
00:15:28.440 --> 00:15:31.740
and maybe how you go about doing that.

343
00:15:31.740 --> 00:15:34.020
Sure, we've all heard that we need

344
00:15:34.020 --> 00:15:37.380
to keep an emergency contact list, for instance.

345
00:15:37.380 --> 00:15:40.920
And most of us assume that that contact list,

346
00:15:40.920 --> 00:15:42.180
and I know mine is...

347
00:15:42.180 --> 00:15:44.070
It's on the phone, right?

348
00:15:44.070 --> 00:15:45.570
Okay, it's on my phone.
Yep.

349
00:15:45.570 --> 00:15:47.970
But my phone is also locked.

350
00:15:47.970 --> 00:15:50.850
So, if I've been injured in an emergency

351
00:15:50.850 --> 00:15:54.240
and I'm unable to unlock my phone for some reason,

352
00:15:54.240 --> 00:15:56.490
and someone who's assisting me

353
00:15:56.490 --> 00:15:59.310
needs to find out where my emergency contacts are,

354
00:15:59.310 --> 00:16:00.600
they're not gonna be able to find them.

355
00:16:00.600 --> 00:16:03.180
So, it's helpful to have a printed

356
00:16:03.180 --> 00:16:05.820
or Braille version as well.

357
00:16:05.820 --> 00:16:08.160
Just don't assume you can access your contact list

358
00:16:08.160 --> 00:16:09.660
on a mobile device.

359
00:16:09.660 --> 00:16:12.060
Other people need to access it, too.

360
00:16:12.060 --> 00:16:17.060
And then it's helpful for someone else, other than yourself,

361
00:16:17.130 --> 00:16:18.840
to have a copy of that list.

362
00:16:18.840 --> 00:16:19.673
Maybe one of the...

363
00:16:19.673 --> 00:16:22.530
A relative or a friend who lives some distance from you

364
00:16:22.530 --> 00:16:25.200
because your list may not be secure.

365
00:16:25.200 --> 00:16:26.247
You may have lost it,

366
00:16:26.247 --> 00:16:28.440
and in a hurry to leave, it doesn't matter.

367
00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:30.480
And you're not gonna remember all of those numbers.

368
00:16:30.480 --> 00:16:33.480
So, if you have someone you can call, or contact,

369
00:16:33.480 --> 00:16:35.490
or go to that has a copy of your list,

370
00:16:35.490 --> 00:16:37.050
that's a big help, too.

371
00:16:37.050 --> 00:16:38.250
Yeah, that's a good point.

372
00:16:38.250 --> 00:16:43.250
And actually, we do have a series of workshops at Hadley,

373
00:16:45.720 --> 00:16:47.820
and it's the Safety Basics Series.

374
00:16:47.820 --> 00:16:49.020
And in that series,

375
00:16:49.020 --> 00:16:53.130
there is actually a contact list template.

376
00:16:53.130 --> 00:16:55.260
It is fully accessible, of course,

377
00:16:55.260 --> 00:16:58.830
and it gives you a nice place to start,

378
00:16:58.830 --> 00:17:01.200
where you fill out that info,

379
00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:03.750
and then you can print it, you can emboss it,

380
00:17:03.750 --> 00:17:05.010
you can do whatever.

381
00:17:05.010 --> 00:17:07.470
So, maybe it's there on your device,

382
00:17:07.470 --> 00:17:12.270
but it's also available to someone else as well.

383
00:17:12.270 --> 00:17:13.950
Talking about mobile phones,

384
00:17:13.950 --> 00:17:17.190
there is the Medical ID

385
00:17:17.190 --> 00:17:20.070
and other stuff that's there in your phone.

386
00:17:20.070 --> 00:17:22.980
And theoretically, the Medical ID,

387
00:17:22.980 --> 00:17:26.070
which has all of your meds, info, and such,

388
00:17:26.070 --> 00:17:28.080
should be visible on the lock screen.

389
00:17:28.080 --> 00:17:30.360
But the problem can be,

390
00:17:30.360 --> 00:17:35.360
if you are using certain types of accessibility options,

391
00:17:36.510 --> 00:17:41.510
like if you have VoiceOver or Talk Back on that Medical ID,

392
00:17:41.940 --> 00:17:44.970
you're not going to be able to tap on it.

393
00:17:44.970 --> 00:17:47.430
You have the gestures for double tapping

394
00:17:47.430 --> 00:17:49.770
for these mobile screen readers,

395
00:17:49.770 --> 00:17:51.917
and not everyone is going to know that.

396
00:17:51.917 --> 00:17:53.220
Right.
And so,

397
00:17:53.220 --> 00:17:56.220
just being aware of that,

398
00:17:56.220 --> 00:17:58.380
it's a good idea to have that filled out,

399
00:17:58.380 --> 00:18:01.410
but also know that if you're incapacitated,

400
00:18:01.410 --> 00:18:03.307
you might not be able to explain,

401
00:18:03.307 --> 00:18:07.020
"Oh, here's what you need to do to unlock my phone

402
00:18:07.020 --> 00:18:09.420
or to view that stuff."

403
00:18:09.420 --> 00:18:10.380
No, that's absolutely true.

404
00:18:10.380 --> 00:18:13.290
And thank you for pointing out the Safety Basics Series

405
00:18:13.290 --> 00:18:14.730
that we do have on our website,

406
00:18:14.730 --> 00:18:17.700
a series of workshops all about the subject today.

407
00:18:17.700 --> 00:18:21.810
And I recommend anyone who's interested in exploring further

408
00:18:21.810 --> 00:18:24.930
the topic of emergency preparedness to go check those out.

409
00:18:24.930 --> 00:18:29.010
It really is a good series of just basic stuff

410
00:18:29.010 --> 00:18:31.110
that you can do,

411
00:18:31.110 --> 00:18:34.740
and there are some resource lists there as well.

412
00:18:34.740 --> 00:18:37.950
So, really useful, we'll have that in the show notes.

413
00:18:37.950 --> 00:18:42.690
So, let's think about if something is happening

414
00:18:42.690 --> 00:18:46.350
and you're not able to shelter in place.

415
00:18:46.350 --> 00:18:51.210
Maybe you have to evacuate for a fire, or a hurricane,

416
00:18:51.210 --> 00:18:54.480
or something where you have a little bit of time

417
00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:56.940
to then get out,

418
00:18:56.940 --> 00:18:59.880
what are some things we need to think about

419
00:18:59.880 --> 00:19:04.130
in terms of getting out safely?

420
00:19:04.130 --> 00:19:07.110
Good question, and it really comes down, again,

421
00:19:07.110 --> 00:19:09.210
in my mind, to self-sufficiency

422
00:19:09.210 --> 00:19:11.310
as a person with a vision impairment.

423
00:19:11.310 --> 00:19:15.750
So normally, you'd want to have two places to go

424
00:19:15.750 --> 00:19:17.250
if you need to evacuate.

425
00:19:17.250 --> 00:19:19.050
And one would be close by,

426
00:19:19.050 --> 00:19:22.740
and that's where your local emergency management coordinator

427
00:19:22.740 --> 00:19:23.610
could help you out.

428
00:19:23.610 --> 00:19:27.600
You contact them, find out where the evacuation centers are,

429
00:19:27.600 --> 00:19:31.440
and then another place would be some distance away,

430
00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:33.840
maybe a friend or relative family member

431
00:19:33.840 --> 00:19:37.770
that if the entire community is in jeopardy,

432
00:19:37.770 --> 00:19:40.440
you have somewhere where you know you can go.

433
00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:42.270
Right, right.
And here's the issue

434
00:19:42.270 --> 00:19:43.980
with self-sufficiency.

435
00:19:43.980 --> 00:19:45.060
I don't drive, for instance,

436
00:19:45.060 --> 00:19:48.232
so if you're not driving regularly,

437
00:19:48.232 --> 00:19:51.570
we tend sometimes to sort of lose track

438
00:19:51.570 --> 00:19:53.580
of how to get where we need to go.

439
00:19:53.580 --> 00:19:54.720
We're letting other people do it.

440
00:19:54.720 --> 00:19:55.553
Uber, right?

441
00:19:55.553 --> 00:20:00.000
Uber drivers, or taxi drivers, or paratransit, et cetera.

442
00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:02.610
But I think it's critical

443
00:20:02.610 --> 00:20:06.870
if we have our evacuation destinations in mind

444
00:20:06.870 --> 00:20:11.870
to actually know for ourselves the actual route, the roads,

445
00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:16.920
the turnings, the mileages, the landmarks, et cetera,

446
00:20:16.920 --> 00:20:19.050
to get us to where we want to go.

447
00:20:19.050 --> 00:20:21.840
The point is, you don't wanna depend on someone else

448
00:20:21.840 --> 00:20:23.490
to wayfind for you then.

449
00:20:23.490 --> 00:20:25.920
You need to be able, as much as possible,

450
00:20:25.920 --> 00:20:28.770
to give them precise directions on how to get there.

451
00:20:28.770 --> 00:20:32.280
That means go two miles down this street,

452
00:20:32.280 --> 00:20:34.860
take a right on this street,

453
00:20:34.860 --> 00:20:36.180
and really have it in your head.

454
00:20:36.180 --> 00:20:37.770
Have that map in your head

455
00:20:37.770 --> 00:20:40.530
of how to get to your evacuation destination.

456
00:20:40.530 --> 00:20:41.760
Don't rely on anybody else.

457
00:20:41.760 --> 00:20:44.583
It's easy to do that, you get in a pattern of it.

458
00:20:44.583 --> 00:20:47.850
I know I do, so that's my advice there.

459
00:20:47.850 --> 00:20:52.830
What about if you are in like a complex,

460
00:20:52.830 --> 00:20:54.810
maybe it's assisted living,

461
00:20:54.810 --> 00:20:57.870
or an apartment complex, or whatever,

462
00:20:57.870 --> 00:21:01.380
are there things that you should know,

463
00:21:01.380 --> 00:21:03.240
maybe not just for yourself,

464
00:21:03.240 --> 00:21:06.600
but perhaps the building has an emergency plan,

465
00:21:06.600 --> 00:21:08.827
and a lot of times they're like,

466
00:21:08.827 --> 00:21:10.777
"Oh, yeah, didn't you see the signs?"

467
00:21:10.777 --> 00:21:13.320
"Well, no, not so much."

468
00:21:13.320 --> 00:21:14.640
That's right.

469
00:21:14.640 --> 00:21:17.580
Yeah, a lot of emergency, and this is classic.

470
00:21:17.580 --> 00:21:19.050
The emergency evacuation plans

471
00:21:19.050 --> 00:21:22.230
are in a sort of a small little plaque somewhere

472
00:21:22.230 --> 00:21:24.990
at the end of a hallway.
Yeah.

473
00:21:24.990 --> 00:21:27.120
And if you don't know what those plans are

474
00:21:27.120 --> 00:21:28.590
and you're not aware where the plaque is,

475
00:21:28.590 --> 00:21:30.600
you're not gonna really be up to date.

476
00:21:30.600 --> 00:21:33.810
A lot of apartment buildings do have emergency plans.

477
00:21:33.810 --> 00:21:37.110
And it may, in fact, in some housing units,

478
00:21:37.110 --> 00:21:39.720
there might be a person even in your hall

479
00:21:39.720 --> 00:21:42.120
that's been designated to go door to door

480
00:21:42.120 --> 00:21:43.500
to alert fellow residents.

481
00:21:43.500 --> 00:21:46.350
So again, this is all about knowledge is power

482
00:21:46.350 --> 00:21:47.700
and self-sufficiency,

483
00:21:47.700 --> 00:21:49.530
find out ahead of time

484
00:21:49.530 --> 00:21:52.290
what those emergency evacuation plans are

485
00:21:52.290 --> 00:21:55.080
in case of a fire or a flood, et cetera.

486
00:21:55.080 --> 00:21:57.607
And we all know, we're told,

487
00:21:57.607 --> 00:21:59.940
"Don't get in the elevator in case of a building fire."

488
00:21:59.940 --> 00:22:01.890
So if elevators aren't functional,

489
00:22:01.890 --> 00:22:04.290
it's really helpful for you to figure out:

490
00:22:04.290 --> 00:22:07.140
Can you navigate those stairs safely?

491
00:22:07.140 --> 00:22:08.940
Do you need to practice navigating the stairs?

492
00:22:08.940 --> 00:22:11.520
Do you need to find where the stairwell is,

493
00:22:11.520 --> 00:22:13.688
and maybe do a couple dry runs

494
00:22:13.688 --> 00:22:16.200
to make sure that you've got it down?

495
00:22:16.200 --> 00:22:18.480
But you may also have to stay in your apartment

496
00:22:18.480 --> 00:22:19.440
and wait for assistance.

497
00:22:19.440 --> 00:22:21.600
And if that's a choice that you're gonna have to make,

498
00:22:21.600 --> 00:22:23.072
what's the best way to do that?

499
00:22:23.072 --> 00:22:26.220
Do you hang an alert out outside of your window

500
00:22:26.220 --> 00:22:28.740
to let people know you need assistance?

501
00:22:28.740 --> 00:22:29.730
Right.
How do you do that?

502
00:22:29.730 --> 00:22:32.520
Et cetera, so again, this is all prior planning,

503
00:22:32.520 --> 00:22:33.600
but you're right.

504
00:22:33.600 --> 00:22:38.550
Many of the cues for building plans are visual,

505
00:22:38.550 --> 00:22:40.020
and they're obscure.

506
00:22:40.020 --> 00:22:41.820
And so you're gonna have to be proactive

507
00:22:41.820 --> 00:22:44.160
to find out what those plans are.

508
00:22:44.160 --> 00:22:46.590
Yeah, and you said proactive,

509
00:22:46.590 --> 00:22:50.460
and that made me think of something else as well.

510
00:22:50.460 --> 00:22:52.693
Again, it's hurricane season here,

511
00:22:52.693 --> 00:22:55.170
and we often see on the news

512
00:22:55.170 --> 00:22:58.680
someone who has elected to stay behind,

513
00:22:58.680 --> 00:23:01.650
and, "I wanna stay with my stuff,

514
00:23:01.650 --> 00:23:04.140
I wanna stay in my house,"

515
00:23:04.140 --> 00:23:09.140
and then things go awry and they need to be rescued.

516
00:23:09.600 --> 00:23:10.993
I'm wondering...

517
00:23:10.993 --> 00:23:13.320
I feel like this is an individual choice,

518
00:23:13.320 --> 00:23:16.140
but do you think now differently

519
00:23:16.140 --> 00:23:20.970
about whether you would choose to shelter in place,

520
00:23:20.970 --> 00:23:22.207
or whether you think,

521
00:23:22.207 --> 00:23:27.207
"Maybe it is actually safe for me to get out ahead of time

522
00:23:28.470 --> 00:23:31.530
because I can't necessarily depend

523
00:23:31.530 --> 00:23:33.840
on other people to rescue me,

524
00:23:33.840 --> 00:23:38.670
and I may have some additional logistics to think through.

525
00:23:38.670 --> 00:23:42.810
So, maybe I ought to just evacuate in the beginning

526
00:23:42.810 --> 00:23:44.910
before things get too bad."

527
00:23:44.910 --> 00:23:48.990
Yeah, I personally err on the side of caution.

528
00:23:48.990 --> 00:23:50.130
But I will say,

529
00:23:50.130 --> 00:23:54.090
there will be notices if the natural disaster

530
00:23:54.090 --> 00:23:55.500
or the emergency is...

531
00:23:55.500 --> 00:23:57.180
If there's enough time,

532
00:23:57.180 --> 00:23:58.860
there'll be notices from authorities

533
00:23:58.860 --> 00:24:01.050
about when it's time to evacuate.

534
00:24:01.050 --> 00:24:03.810
Right, yeah.
And my advice

535
00:24:03.810 --> 00:24:06.150
would be do not ignore those notices.

536
00:24:06.150 --> 00:24:08.302
If you decide to shelter in place

537
00:24:08.302 --> 00:24:10.980
and you just don't wanna leave your home,

538
00:24:10.980 --> 00:24:13.890
if the disaster then occurs in your neighborhood

539
00:24:13.890 --> 00:24:15.030
or in your area,

540
00:24:15.030 --> 00:24:17.640
emergency personnel are going to be overwhelmed.

541
00:24:17.640 --> 00:24:20.432
So, rescue may not always be quick.

542
00:24:20.432 --> 00:24:21.690
That's something

543
00:24:21.690 --> 00:24:24.240
you're gonna have to make a personal decision about.

544
00:24:24.240 --> 00:24:28.470
Yeah, and I think as things are happening,

545
00:24:28.470 --> 00:24:32.970
you wanna be able to keep up to date with what's going on.

546
00:24:32.970 --> 00:24:36.960
And that, in and of itself, is a chore sometimes

547
00:24:36.960 --> 00:24:40.620
because if you watch the news,

548
00:24:40.620 --> 00:24:44.968
you are presented with an, "As you can see here,

549
00:24:44.968 --> 00:24:47.010
this is the trajectory

550
00:24:47.010 --> 00:24:50.010
of whatever this thing is heading your way,

551
00:24:50.010 --> 00:24:54.330
and that may not be accessible to you anymore."

552
00:24:54.330 --> 00:24:58.560
So, what are some ways then to keep updated

553
00:24:58.560 --> 00:25:03.360
on what's going on in a way that is gonna work for you?

554
00:25:03.360 --> 00:25:04.230
Good question.

555
00:25:04.230 --> 00:25:05.790
And you're right, you're watching the TV,

556
00:25:05.790 --> 00:25:07.260
and they're pointing to a map, right?

557
00:25:07.260 --> 00:25:08.260
They're not-
Yep.

558
00:25:09.780 --> 00:25:12.600
I have a weather radio, an NOAA,

559
00:25:12.600 --> 00:25:15.360
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration

560
00:25:15.360 --> 00:25:17.820
weather radio on hand.

561
00:25:17.820 --> 00:25:21.000
It has a hand crank, so it'll power up without a battery,

562
00:25:21.000 --> 00:25:25.350
and I can monitor weather on that if I need to.

563
00:25:25.350 --> 00:25:28.380
You can get a sign up for mobile phone alerts

564
00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:31.080
and warnings about severe weather in your area.

565
00:25:31.080 --> 00:25:32.850
And then there's the FEMA app,

566
00:25:32.850 --> 00:25:35.370
the Federal Emergency Management Agency,

567
00:25:35.370 --> 00:25:37.620
and you can download that app on your phone

568
00:25:37.620 --> 00:25:39.630
and get alerts there as well.

569
00:25:39.630 --> 00:25:42.570
So, there's other places than just the television

570
00:25:42.570 --> 00:25:45.510
and your sort of local radio weather person

571
00:25:45.510 --> 00:25:49.710
who may or may not be giving you helpful information

572
00:25:49.710 --> 00:25:51.210
in a non-visual way.

573
00:25:51.210 --> 00:25:52.830
So, the other thing I would say

574
00:25:52.830 --> 00:25:55.320
is if you are gonna use a weather radio,

575
00:25:55.320 --> 00:25:57.870
or use the FEMA app, or whatever,

576
00:25:57.870 --> 00:25:59.820
practice using those first.

577
00:25:59.820 --> 00:26:03.060
You don't want to get familiar with that device or that app

578
00:26:03.060 --> 00:26:04.830
right in the middle of a disaster.

579
00:26:04.830 --> 00:26:07.920
You wanna make sure that you're comfortable operating both.

580
00:26:07.920 --> 00:26:09.630
Again, it comes down to prior planning,

581
00:26:09.630 --> 00:26:11.100
and it won't take long,

582
00:26:11.100 --> 00:26:13.230
but it doesn't hurt to make sure

583
00:26:13.230 --> 00:26:16.380
that you can use those informational resources

584
00:26:16.380 --> 00:26:18.630
efficiently and quickly.

585
00:26:18.630 --> 00:26:21.900
Yeah, and I'm kind of amazed at the features

586
00:26:21.900 --> 00:26:24.930
that are available on these weather radios now.

587
00:26:24.930 --> 00:26:27.540
It used to be just a radio,

588
00:26:27.540 --> 00:26:28.590
and you might have access

589
00:26:28.590 --> 00:26:30.630
to some short wave bands or whatever,

590
00:26:30.630 --> 00:26:34.440
but now, they have flashlights on them,

591
00:26:34.440 --> 00:26:38.160
they have ways that you can flash SOS signals,

592
00:26:38.160 --> 00:26:41.550
and they have like a power bank.

593
00:26:41.550 --> 00:26:46.170
So you can charge your mobile phone, for example,

594
00:26:46.170 --> 00:26:48.930
and that can be really helpful.

595
00:26:48.930 --> 00:26:51.600
So it's useful even just beyond

596
00:26:51.600 --> 00:26:55.110
being able to keep you up to date with what's going on,

597
00:26:55.110 --> 00:26:56.820
which I think is so helpful.

598
00:26:56.820 --> 00:27:01.820
So once you make it through whatever the emergency is,

599
00:27:03.120 --> 00:27:08.120
now it's time to think about what comes after.

600
00:27:08.850 --> 00:27:11.490
Are there other things that we should think about

601
00:27:11.490 --> 00:27:13.590
now that things are over,

602
00:27:13.590 --> 00:27:16.320
it's not immediately back to normal, right?

603
00:27:16.320 --> 00:27:18.660
Right, and a lot of this now comes down

604
00:27:18.660 --> 00:27:20.670
to just practical things

605
00:27:20.670 --> 00:27:23.220
that everyone's going to have to pay attention to.

606
00:27:23.220 --> 00:27:25.320
Your home may not be safe.

607
00:27:25.320 --> 00:27:27.000
Don't return to your neighborhood

608
00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:29.010
until authorities announce it's safe to do that.

609
00:27:29.010 --> 00:27:31.950
All that stuff, and we can get that from a lot of sources.

610
00:27:31.950 --> 00:27:32.783
Right.
But,

611
00:27:32.783 --> 00:27:35.486
if you do have some vision loss,

612
00:27:35.486 --> 00:27:38.490
of course be aware that familiar landmarks

613
00:27:38.490 --> 00:27:40.140
and paths of travel,

614
00:27:40.140 --> 00:27:41.845
they might be damaged or obstructed.

615
00:27:41.845 --> 00:27:43.260
Yeah, yeah.
Don't expect

616
00:27:43.260 --> 00:27:45.390
to be able to just forge right ahead

617
00:27:45.390 --> 00:27:46.530
with your cane or without

618
00:27:46.530 --> 00:27:49.560
or with your guide dog in the same way you used to.

619
00:27:49.560 --> 00:27:52.410
One thing I do wanna mention, in the aftermath of disaster,

620
00:27:52.410 --> 00:27:56.027
mail can be halted for days or weeks, so-

621
00:27:56.027 --> 00:27:57.960
Right.
It might be helpful

622
00:27:57.960 --> 00:28:01.710
to think about how you get things like Social Security,

623
00:28:01.710 --> 00:28:03.630
or federal benefits,

624
00:28:03.630 --> 00:28:07.080
or any other kind of checks that come in that you depend on

625
00:28:07.080 --> 00:28:09.510
for your livelihood.

626
00:28:09.510 --> 00:28:11.460
Are those all deposited electronically,

627
00:28:11.460 --> 00:28:13.140
or are you dependent on the mail?

628
00:28:13.140 --> 00:28:14.220
And if mail's disrupted,

629
00:28:14.220 --> 00:28:16.740
what are you going to do in the interim?

630
00:28:16.740 --> 00:28:19.140
So, that's just one quick suggestion.

631
00:28:19.140 --> 00:28:20.760
Yeah, even medications.

632
00:28:20.760 --> 00:28:22.770
A lot of people get mail order medications.

633
00:28:22.770 --> 00:28:24.360
Yes.
And so knowing

634
00:28:24.360 --> 00:28:28.710
to contact your healthcare provider to figure out:

635
00:28:28.710 --> 00:28:31.830
How am I going to get this emergency supply

636
00:28:31.830 --> 00:28:34.770
if my mail order stuff is not coming?

637
00:28:34.770 --> 00:28:36.090
Yeah, absolutely.

638
00:28:36.090 --> 00:28:38.070
So, there are lots of considerations.

639
00:28:38.070 --> 00:28:39.480
It depends on the disaster

640
00:28:39.480 --> 00:28:42.900
and it depends on what authorities are telling you to do.

641
00:28:42.900 --> 00:28:45.960
And a lot of this is not vision-specific at this point,

642
00:28:45.960 --> 00:28:47.718
but definitely pay attention

643
00:28:47.718 --> 00:28:52.620
to what your federal emergency management coordinator

644
00:28:52.620 --> 00:28:54.150
is telling everyone.

645
00:28:54.150 --> 00:28:56.790
And don't assume that your home

646
00:28:56.790 --> 00:28:59.610
or your neighborhood's gonna be the same when you get back.

647
00:28:59.610 --> 00:29:01.500
Well, I'm glad we had a chance

648
00:29:01.500 --> 00:29:03.300
to talk about a lot of this.

649
00:29:03.300 --> 00:29:06.390
Again, it's never comfortable to think about.

650
00:29:06.390 --> 00:29:07.867
No.
It's one of those like,

651
00:29:07.867 --> 00:29:09.210
"Ah, it'll never happen,"

652
00:29:09.210 --> 00:29:12.547
and I feel like we all think that,

653
00:29:12.547 --> 00:29:14.280
"It's not gonna happen to me.

654
00:29:14.280 --> 00:29:16.620
That's a thing that happens to other people."

655
00:29:16.620 --> 00:29:20.430
But, if we are ready ahead of time,

656
00:29:20.430 --> 00:29:23.010
if we're prepared as much as we can be,

657
00:29:23.010 --> 00:29:25.140
then the things that we haven't thought about

658
00:29:25.140 --> 00:29:27.480
won't be piling on top of all the things

659
00:29:27.480 --> 00:29:30.060
that we could have done but didn't, right?

660
00:29:30.060 --> 00:29:31.500
So-
Exactly, exactly.

661
00:29:31.500 --> 00:29:34.380
Yeah, this has been really good.

662
00:29:34.380 --> 00:29:35.310
In our show notes,

663
00:29:35.310 --> 00:29:40.310
we will have a link to our Safety Basics Series,

664
00:29:40.350 --> 00:29:42.030
and in that series,

665
00:29:42.030 --> 00:29:43.692
it's our video workshops,

666
00:29:43.692 --> 00:29:48.692
and they will also have resources down below the workshop

667
00:29:50.070 --> 00:29:51.600
that you can check out as well.

668
00:29:51.600 --> 00:29:54.330
So, there are things like what to put in your go-bag

669
00:29:54.330 --> 00:29:57.150
and the contact list.

670
00:29:57.150 --> 00:29:58.920
A lot of the things that we've mentioned here,

671
00:29:58.920 --> 00:29:59.753
you'll find there.

672
00:29:59.753 --> 00:30:00.586
And of course,

673
00:30:00.586 --> 00:30:05.580
you can always call us to talk some things through as well.

674
00:30:05.580 --> 00:30:08.640
Ed, thank you so much for dropping by

675
00:30:08.640 --> 00:30:10.290
and going through some of this.

676
00:30:10.290 --> 00:30:11.760
It's been informative.

677
00:30:11.760 --> 00:30:12.870
Well, it was a pleasure, Ricky,

678
00:30:12.870 --> 00:30:14.790
and you're right, it is an important topic.

679
00:30:14.790 --> 00:30:16.380
So, I encourage people again

680
00:30:16.380 --> 00:30:18.570
to check out our Safety Basics Series,

681
00:30:18.570 --> 00:30:20.310
and then of course to call us at Hadley

682
00:30:20.310 --> 00:30:21.900
if they have any other questions.

683
00:30:21.900 --> 00:30:23.223
Yeah. Thanks so much.

684
00:30:24.360 --> 00:30:26.070
Got something to say?

685
00:30:26.070 --> 00:30:29.520
Share your thoughts about this episode of "Hadley Presents"

686
00:30:29.520 --> 00:30:32.100
or make suggestions for future episodes.

687
00:30:32.100 --> 00:30:33.810
We'd love to hear from you.

688
00:30:33.810 --> 00:30:38.790
Send us an email at podcast@hadleyhelps.org.

689
00:30:38.790 --> 00:30:43.790
That's P-O-D-C-A-S-T@hadleyhelps.O-R-G.

690
00:30:45.300 --> 00:30:50.040
Or leave us a message at 847-784-2870.

691
00:30:52.230 --> 00:30:53.377
Thanks for listening.

692
00:30:53.377 --> 00:30:56.044
(pensive music)