In an effort to build resilience against rising threats, Britons are advised to collect emergency supplies such as food, water, and first aid kits.
Oliver Dowden, the Deputy PM, issued this warning in conjunction with the Governments release of “Prepare,” a new online platform to guide Britons on emergency preparedness.
The Prepare website encourages the public to prepare for various risks, such as bio-security crises, floods, power outages, and potential pandemics.
The Prepare site emphasizes the daily occurrence of emergencies in the UK and globally, pointing out “deliberate actions” as well as accidents, natural hazards, and infrastructure failures.
It additionally warns of events that can “develop and persist over days, months, or even longer”.
Britons have received a set of measures to prepare their households in response to emergency warnings, with the Deputy PM advising that these are “sensible safeguards, not stockpiling”.
The “emergency kit” should consist of:
– A wind-up or battery-powered flashlight.
– A power bank to recharge your mobile phone.
– Battery or wind-up radio to get updates during a power outage.
– Spare batteries for flashlight, radio and for any necessary medical equipment.
– A first aid kit containing waterproof bandages, a thermometer, antiseptic, sterile dressings, gloves, medical tape, and tweezers.
– Wet wipes and Hand sanitizer.
– Water bottles, enough for cooking and drinking.
– Canned food like meat, fruit, or vegetables (plus a can opener).
– Baby supplies such as nappies and baby formula.
This campaign comes after Dowden’s 2023 launch of an emergency alert system that sends loud alerts to mobile phones if there’s a life-threatening risk in the area.
Anonymous source said the new website forms part of the “largest overhaul of public preparedness in decades”. This will include new training for first responders and a new program to model what would happen in another pandemic.
Next summer, thousands are expected to participate in a tier one pandemic exercise as part of the program.
This announcement follows recent government warning that threats to the UK’s national security are growing, describing the risk as the worst since the Cold War.
Over the past few years, especially last few months, we have seen the risk worsen considerably.
It’s certainly the worst since the Cold War, or even possibly since the Second World War.
