In anticipation of prolonged frigid temperatures and winter precipitation next week, the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) is cautioning residents to take steps now to ensure safety later. Freezing temps, snow/ice, and loss of power or water present hazards to your health, food and safety. Here is what you need to know:
Stay safe from carbon monoxide poisoning
Heaters that burn fuel, such as a furnace, generator, or gas water heater, produce carbon monoxide that can contaminate the air, causing nausea, dizziness, headaches, brain or heart damage.
Never use generators, gas or charcoal grills indoors. Outdoors, keep them away from windows.
Never burn anything in a stove or fireplace that is not vented properly.
Never heat your house with a gas oven.
Do not warm your car up in a closed garage.
If your garage is attached to your house, close the door to the house while you warm up the car.
Stay healthy from food poisoning
Food in your refrigerator will be safe to eat if power is out for less than four hours. Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to keep food cold longer.
After four hours, pack milk, other dairy products, meat, fish, eggs, gravy, and spoilable leftovers into a cooler surrounded by ice or a Styrofoam cooler.
Freezers can keep food safe for up to 48 hours if they are full, 24 hours if they are half-full.
Bottled, boiled, or treated water is safe to drink when you are under a boil-water alert. Watch for boil water alerts specific to your area.
Bring water to a rolling boil for 1 minute to kill harmful bacteria and parasites.
If you are under a boil-water alert, do not use contaminated water to wash dishes, brush your teeth, wash and prepare food, wash your hands, make ice, or make baby formula. If possible, use baby formula that does not need to have water added.
Stay healthy outdoors
Drink warm liquids that do not contain caffeine or alcohol.
Watch for signs of hypothermia (shivering, slow speech, memory loss, stumbling, sleepiness).
Watch for signs of frostbite: Your skin may feel like "pins and needles" followed by numbness.
If you think you have frostbite or hypothermia, don't eat or drink anything containing caffeine or alcohol – they can worsen your symptoms.
For more information, visit https://msdh.ms.gov/winter
Stay up to date on news and updates at www.msdh.ms.gov. and on social media: facebook.com/HealthyMS, twitter.com/msdh and Instagram.com/healthy.ms
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