While National Preparedness Month is coming to a close, Johnson County Emergency Management wants to make sure you stay prepared all year long. That's because an emergency could happen anytime, anywhere – such as a tornado, flood or power outage.

Emergency Management has been providing tips throughout September with its 30 Days, 30 Ways to stay prepared campaign, and there are a handful of tips that could keep you safe in the case of an emergency.

• Create and discuss a household emergency plan: Keep your whole family prepared. As you plan, consider any family members with special needs, specific preparations for children and what you will do with your pets.
• Create an emergency kit with essential items to last, at minimum, the first 72 hours: An emergency kit includes essentials like medicine, food, water, an emergency blanket, a flashlight and more. Find a checklist of items at ready.gov/kit.
• Have multiple ways of receiving emergency notifications: Ensure Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) are activated on your cellphone, purchase a weather radio and follow official news sources.

If you live or work in Johnson County, we encourage you to sign up for emergency alerts from NotifyJoCo. NotifyJoCo sends out time-sensitive messages in the event of an emergency. Sign up at notifiyjoco.org.

Help keep our community prepared this National Preparedness Month and beyond. Find more preparedness tips at jocogov.org/em, as well as through FEMA at ready.gov.