After a tree destroyed Tucker’s roof during a tornado, he felt lucky to be alive—and underprepared for the next disaster his family might face. On this episode, Courtney Martin welcomes back author and former How To! host Amanda Ripley to discuss emergency preparedness and how regular citizens can react smarter during a devastating event. Amanda’s newly updated book is The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes—and Why.

After listening to this conversation, seek out (and save) this information: CERT Training Your state’s homeland security website Your county’s emergency management agency Local emergency alerts

If you liked this episode check out: How To Keep Cool in a Crisis and How To Cope With Climate Anxiety. Also mentioned: How To Pick a College (and Actually Afford It) and How To Take a Gap Year

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How To’s executive producer is Derek John. Joel Meyer is our senior editor/producer. The show is produced by Rosemary Belson, with Kevin Bendis and Sara McCrae.

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Bonus Episode



Quick Fix: Building Trust in an Emergency
Amanda Ripley on the foundational problem of emergency response.