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Ushio: Winter is coming…

Submitted by Emergency Management Specialist Sherry LoSapio.

Dog with blanket over half of face in living area of home.

Hi everyone, it’s me Ushio (You-She-Oh) again, this time bringing you some tips to help you when that cold, white stuff falls from the sky. Last time, that silly cat insinuated that I have trouble keeping up with everything, but when it comes to that cold stuff, I run circles around her.

I’ve heard that our neighbors to the north have already experienced some winter weather this season. That is why the Office of Mission Assurance (where my hooman works) would like to encourage employees to prepare now while the weather is still nice. Ready.gov provides a number of useful tips, some of which are as follows:

  • Mom says creating an emergency supply kit for your car is smart. Include jumper cables, sand, a flashlight, warm clothes (and doggy sweaters/booties), blankets, bottled water, and non-perishable snacks. Keep the gas tank full.
  • Mom always watches the weather reports and suggests that you do too. These let you know about things called warnings for freezing weather and winter storms (brrrr). Sign up for your community’s warning system. The Emergency Alert System and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio also provide emergency alerts.
  • Ensure that your information is up to date in GCIMS and HRLinks. Mom says that the GSA emergency alert system pulls data from these when sending out alerts to employees. If your information is not updated, you can potentially miss out on important information relevant specifically to the Heartland Region.
  • Mom sure has been busy around the house preparing our home to keep out the cold with insulation, caulking, weather stripping and learning how to keep pipes from freezing. She even installed and tested our smoke alarms (ouch, my big ears didn’t enjoy that!) and carbon monoxide detectors with battery backups.
  • Last, my mom is concerned that when the snow does come to our area that you all remember to reduce the risk of a heart attack by avoiding overexertion when shoveling snow, and to watch for signs of frostbite and hypothermia.

OMA wishes all of our employees a safe and healthy winter season. We hope that these tips help you prepare for whatever winter weather we may have in the Heartland Region this year.

This is Ushio signing off. It has been so much fun helping Momma out with her work while she’s been occupying my space!

A black paw print on a white background.





Ushio

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Last updated: Dec 6, 2021
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