There are some simple steps you can take as an individual to help prepare to meet any emergency, whether a natural disaster or civil disturbance.

• Be sure that your department head and Stanford directory have your correct current address, home phone number, and emergency notification information. If you expect to stay somewhere other than your home in an emergency, be sure your supervisor knows how to reach you. Update your emergency contact information in StanfordYou for use by the AlertSU system.
• Develop a personal emergency plan with your family/roommates. Be sure to include pets and those with special needs and pets.
• Establish an out-of-state telephone contact for all members of your family and close friends. This will serve as a clearinghouse for information if family members become separated. In an earthquake, out-of-state long distance lines often continue to function when local phones do not.
• If you have children, talk with your schools or day care providers about their emergency procedures.
• Make sure you have adequate supplies at home and in your car for emergencies:
  • Keep your car’s gas tank at least half full at all times
  • Be sure you have plenty of gas to get to your destination, even with major traffic delays
  • Have enough cash on hand for several days’ needs
  • Keep adequate prescription medications on hand
  • In your home emergency kit, always keep at least a 72 hour supply of food (pre-cooked canned goods, granola bars, etc.) and emergency water (minimum 1 gallon per person per day)
  • If applicable, remember pet food, diapers, a spare pair of prescription glasses
  • Regularly check the batteries in your portable radios, smoke detectors, cell phones and flashlights and keep extra batteries on hand, or purchase a crank-type radio and flashlights
  • Be sure the fire extinguishers in your home and car are properly charged
  • Keep a change of clothes in your car and at work
  • Regularly conduct drills to practice your plan
• Know how to shut off utilities (gas, water, electricity) if necessary
• Inventory your possessions using a video or still camera and store in a fireproof  safe or safety deposit box
• Collect important documents (insurance policies, home title, wills) and store them in a fireproof safe or safety deposit box
• Have identification and important phone numbers accessible
• Program emergency contact numbers in your cell phone using ICE, ICE2, ICE3 (In Case of Emergency)
• If you normally use public transportation, consider making arrangements to ride with someone else as a contingency plan if public transportation is unavailable
• If a decision is made to close the university, go directly to your planned destination via a familiar, well-traveled route. Do not make stops or side trips. When you get there, notify a relative or friend that you have arrived safely.
• If you are in doubt about whether to report to work, call your local hotline for information about your organization or the Stanford Emergency Information Hotline at (650) 725-5555 for general information about the university.