Natural disasters can come at any moment and leave a wake of costly repairs and other expenses.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is promoting National Preparedness Month, with each week targeted toward an aspect of preparing for disasters and emergencies. This week’s theme is “Low-Cost, No-Cost Preparedness.” Washington County Emergency Management Coordinator Marissa Reisen says a big part of this topic is knowing what kinds of emergencies you may be prone to depending on where you live. In the case of Iowans, Reisen says one way of lowering your expenses is weather proofing your home for the winter, “Another thing is to check your insurance coverage to make sure that it covers what you think it covers and to make sure that it’s up to date and that there have been any changes to your home, your kids. If your kids have moved out and gone to college or if they’ve just moved out, that can change what kind of coverage you need. So just making sure things are up to date and appropriate for your needs at the time.”

Reisen also recommends signing up for emergency alerts and safeguarding important documents, which goes hand in hand with making an emergency plan for your household. For more information visit here.