Many people are cast about today in a bit of a fog – having lost an hour of sleep.
It is a reality that accompanies the arrival of Daylight Saving Time at 2 a.m. today, many people are fumbling about – moving the dials on all the clocks around the house. This is also a perfect time to do a bit of a safety inventory, suggests Jackie Kloosterboer.
Kloosterboer is an earthquake and disaster preparedness specialist from Vancouver – who began her career in Maple Ridge more than a quarter century ago.
Kloosterboer has been on the frontline of disaster events, presented disaster preparedness workshops, helped those impacted in residential fires, and supported folks evacuated by forest fires or floods. She has also published a book, called Earthquake Preparedness Guide that is full of tips and suggestions on how to be ready for whatever disaster hits.
In addition to springing forward, and enjoying the extra daylight, she suggests people “take the opportunity tocheck your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors, along with your disaster supplies,” she said. “This will help to ensure when faced with a disaster, you and your family and pets will have what you need.”
Common items in a disaster kits with expiry dates include food, water, batteries, medical items, and pet food.
“While checking your kits and replacing expired items, this is a great opportunity to make sure you have an adequate supply of face masks and hand sanitizer safely stored in your kits. When evacuating your home, you may not have time to collect your face masks, but if your grab-and-go kits are near the door, the chances of you having what you need significantly go up.”
Daylight saving time hits on the second Sunday in March and is the practice of advancing clocks during warmer months so that darkness falls at a later clock time.
B.C. has agreed to move to Daylight Saving Time permanently. However, since the issue was first raised more than 10 years ago, B.C. governments have been consistent that B.C., Yukon, Washington, Oregon and California need to have coordinated time for airline schedules and other key functions of their integrated economies.
RELATED: B.C. still awaiting U.S. approval to eliminate daylight saving time
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