Be Ready For Disasters, Get Prepared!

By Author: Marcus Stalder
Total Articles: 491
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Compare the destruction in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami with the Haiti earthquake of 2010 or the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. In Japan, it is expected that the death toll may rise to 20,000 people. It could be worse if scientists, military personnel, and the international effort cannot prevent nuclear disaster. As horrible as 20,000 deaths is, it is a miracle that it isn't worse. If not a miracle, it is a heroic effort to be prepared.

In Haiti, as many as 700,000 people have died, been wounded, and/or found themselves homeless. Around the Indian Ocean, more than 150,000 people lost their lives in the first day alone. The Japanese earthquake was far bigger than Haiti's, and about as big as the quake that caused the tsunami in the Indian Ocean in 2004, but the destruction and loss of life in Japan - of which it is still hard to picture the gravity - pales in comparison.

What lessons can we learn?

The Important of Preparing

Be prepared, physically and financially. Japan has been massively successful at organizing a relief effort and getting its people emergency supplies: food, water, shelter, ...
... etc. They have provided economic stimulus, which will hopefully stem the financial bleeding of the people impacted by the natural disaster. They have also, moreover, prepared their insurance for disaster.

Here's how to prepare your own insurance policy for tsunamis, earthquakes, forest fires, hurricanes, and any other disasters to which your home might be vulnerable.
Lesson 1: Sweat the Small Stuff

While the details make all the difference when it comes to surviving disasters in the best state possible, take this phrase literally. Well, not the sweating part, but the small stuff part. You need to have all your small items covered.

Sometimes the most expensive items you own are tiny:

* Jewelry
* Decor
* Antiques
* Cameras
* Electronics
* Tools

In order to have coverage for these, you need to keep a detailed list. Include serial numbers, photographs, and good descriptions. Update this every year or each time you add something new to the list.

Lesson 2: Emergency Kit

An emergency kit is not the same as a First Aid Kit (which you should have as well). Your emergency kit is going to have all of the important documents that you cannot afford to lose in a disaster, as well as your provisions for emergency finances:

* Copies of crucial documents (deeds, birth certificates, social security cards, marriage license)
* Copies of prescriptions, health insurance cards, dental cards, etc.
* Backups of financial records and income tax forms
* Traveler's checks or other financial plans for at least a week's worth of transportation or accommodation

You should have this stuff ready to grab and run with. You want it to fit into a convenient, tough, waterproof container that is smaller than a briefcase.

Lesson 3: Updated Home Insurance Coverage

Make sure that your policy includes coverage for any natural or other disasters, including nuclear damage. Make sure that there is enough home insurance coverage to replace the home and property. Take preventative measures, like movies important things to a safe, dry place, to stop home insurance companies from denying coverage.