FEMA’s latest initiative is pushing to protect seniors from the impacts of natural disasters.

New data shows that weather-related disasters were blamed for over 250 deaths and nearly $60 billion in damage during 2023. Senior citizens often take the heaviest hit from natural disasters, especially if they are living alone or have a disability.

FEMA’S awareness initiative, called Take Control 1, 2, 3, encourages older adults and emergency managers to develop an action plan before a storm strikes.

“We want to make sure that neighbors can help neighbors as quickly as possible and that people know how to help themselves as they continue to wait for additional support,” said FEMA senior official Marcus T. Coleman Jr.

Coleman also advises seniors to prepare a disaster emergency kit.

“Medications, extra pair of glasses, portable food, water. Make sure you have all of the important documents that are either downloaded on a thumb drive or maybe uploaded to the cloud,” he said.

Coleman says extreme weather patterns from recent years are not slowing down any time soon. He says it is important for individuals to be prepared ahead of time in order to stay safe.