What to do in an emergency

In Ards and North Down we work with a wide range of partner agencies within the Southern Civil Contingencies Group to ensure we are ready to respond and help the community if a major emergency takes place.

For more information on how residents can prepare their households for an emergency, please see Be ready for emergencies | nidirect

If there is an emergency, remember to:

Stay calm, reassure others and think before acting
Don't put yourself or others in danger
If people are injured or there is a threat to life call 999
Follow the advice of the emergency services

You should know how to turn off water, electricity and gas supplies and where these connection feeds are in your home.

Have an emergency kit ready

Should you experience an emergency it is important that you and your family or housemates have made preparations to take care of yourselves. Putting together an emergency kit is one such way to get prepared.

Below are just some of the items and details that you might wish to include in the emergency kit. This should be kept somewhere in the house where everyone can get to it if needed.

list of useful phone numbers - your doctor, close relatives, local council
battery or wind up radio
battery or wind up torch
spare batteries
candles and matches
first aid kit
spare keys to your home and car
spare pair of glasses or contact lenses
spare charger for mobile phone
toiletries and sanitary supplies
special equipment for children and people with special needs

Other essential items

If you are at home and an emergency happens, try to gather some essential items before you leave your property. To make this easier to do you should always keep such items in the same place within the home. This can include:

any regularly prescribed medication
mobile phone
cash and credit cards
spare clothes and blankets
bottled water
ready-to-eat food - for example tinned food
bottle or tin opener
copies of important documents - birth certificates, insurance policies
photographic identification