Fears over first aid

Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Huddersfield, England), Dec 3, 2007

ONLY 3% of the population have even the most basic resources for use in a disaster situation, the British Red Cross said.

Despite 68% of Britons saying they think they are prepared for an emergency, most do not have the five basic Red Cross criteria for personal emergency preparedness: first aid training, owning a first aid kit, torch, working smoke alarmand hard copy of emergency contacts.

The survey of 1,000 respondents also showed that less than half of respondents (49%) own a first aid kit, only 17%are first-aid trained and less than a quarter of respondents (23%) have a hard copy list of emergency contacts.

The charity has launched a new website today, with information on simple precautions that can be taken to prepare for a range of emergencies.

This includes both major emergencies such as floods, fires, heat waves, terrorism, adverse winter weather and personal emergencies.

Tony Thompson, head of emergency response at the British Red Cross, said: "As recent floods in the UK have shown, it is not only personal emergencies that we should all be prepared for. As an emergency response organisation, Red Cross teams know how emergencies can affect individuals. This online resource will give the public jargon-free knowledge."

The web address is www.redcross.org.uk /prepare.