NOVEMBER

The holiday season is always a special time of year. We have much to be thankful for – take time to celebrate all that has gone well this year. At CERT, we always offer helpful reminders to keep you and your family safe and the holidays present a few added risks we hope you are mindful of. It is also a time when busy people become careless and vulnerable to theft and other holiday crime. We can never be too careful, too prepared or too aware.

Food

Cooking is the leading cause of all winter home fires and Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires. Keep the holidays happy by cooking mindfully and handling your food safely. The National Safety Council offers some helpful tips here. Frying the Thanksgiving turkey can be a disaster – check out this handy infographic from the US Fire Administration here .

Our pets are part of the family but should perhaps not partake of the holiday feasts! Many plants and food are toxic to our fur friends. Chocolate, raisins and nuts are just a few items to avoid. The ASPCA offers a safety list of P eople Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets for you to download keep handy.

Travel

If you will be traveling, please check ahead for weather advisories. Learn the weather/climate risk for the route and your destination – know what to do before, during and after such events. Stay off the road during and after a winter storm.

Always keep an emergency car kit in your car. During the winter keep the proper emergency winter road tools such as an ice scraper, shovel, gloves, blanket, emergency flares or reflectors, rock salt, first aid kit, extra windshield washer, etc.

Shopping

Shop securely online over the holidays.
Watch for suspicious activity that asks you to do something right away, offers something that sounds too good to be true, or needs your personal information. Think before you click. When in doubt, do NOT click.
Limit the personal information you share online. Change privacy settings and do not use location features.
Don’t share PINs or passwords. Use devices that use biometric scans when possible
Check your account statements and credit reports regularly.
When shopping in stores, park smart. Use parking lots with attendants whenever possible and take all your valuables with you, from cellphones to backpacks. Always keep your keys in your hand while approaching your car.
Keep your wallet in a hard-to-reach place and don’t carry excess cash.
It is easy to get distracted while shopping. Keep your eyes ahead of you and not on your phone.

Other preparedness information may be found in our 2023 Preparedness calendar here, or download the November guide here.

GET ALERTS

SMART 911

Get alerted about emergencies and other important community news by signing up for Martinez Alerts. This system enables The City of Martinez to provide you with critical information quickly in a variety of situations, such as severe weather, unexpected road closures, police activity, missing persons and evacuations of buildings or neighborhoods. You may specify your home, mobile or business phones, email address, text messages and more.

THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY COMMUNITY WARNING SYSYEM

The Contra Costa County Community Warning System (CWS) is one of the nation’s most modern and effective all-hazard public warning systems. CWS is an all-hazards system designed to alert the community of an emergency through multiple communication tools. CWS is generally not used for traffic alerts. Sign up to receive important alerts from CWS here.

KNOW YOUR ZONE

Be prepared for wildfires that may affect your home. Know when to act and what action to take. These notices are issued for a Zone with an evacuation status. Find out your home’s zone at CWS Know Your Zone . Zone Aware is now called genasys. Learn more here.

CALIFORNIA OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES

California EOS provides alerts and messaging with critical information. Don’t let earthquakes catch you off guard! Seconds of advance warning can provide opportunity to take life-saving actions. Register for California Earthquake Early Warning. Wireless Emergency Services (WEA) is a nation-wide system providing lifesaving information for the State of California sent by state and local public officials. Register for these free services at Cal OES Alerts .

Visit our Resources page for more!