Red Cross recommends a few extra items for your hurricane prep kit during pandemic

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - The American Red Cross is encouraging families to get a head start on their emergency preparedness plans, which could look a little different during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Experts recommend talking with your family to determine the safest sheltering options should you need to evacuate. Having a travel bag ready is also a good idea. A spokesperson with the Red Cross says there are few other items families should consider having.

“We encourage folks to pack in some hand sanitizer, have a mask, at least one or two for every single member of the family, and then of course to have gloves. So if you are in an area where you are around a lot of people, you don’t have to worry about touching something that is contaminated,” said Stephanie Wagner with the Red Cross.

Wagner also recommends families reevaluate their emergency plans during the pandemic.

“So since we’re dealing with COVID-19, the emergency plans that you may have put in place actually may change, so you want to review your evacuation plans to know if you’re going to your friend’s house or if you’re going to a relative,” said Wagner.

Wagner says they’re also adding additional shelter options in case of an emergency evacuation this storm season.

“So no matter what the incident and emergency, maybe we will have an adequate workforce to be able to serve the community that includes having more spaces for more sheltering if we need to do any kind of congregate sheltering or having additional cleaning processes for folks that may come into some of these congregate settings,” said Wagner.

The Red Cross is currently accepting volunteers, including virtual opportunities. Click here for more information.

Click here to report a typo.

Copyright 2020 WAFB. All rights reserved.