OFF BEAT: For ultimate safety preparedness, gear up for zombie apocalypse

Emergency preparedness is an important part of keeping family members safe during large-scale catastrophes—and according to state officials in Oregon, that includes zombie infestations.

Hoping to scare up some added interest among state workers for its annual safety week initiatives, Oregon's Housing and Community Services agency is urging employees and their families to create personal safety plans designed to respond to a sudden, widespread uprising of ravenous, flesh-eating zombies, according to a report.

“Or if there's an earthquake, or a hurricane or even a power outage,” HCS administrative services manager Sandy McDonnell told the Journal. “If you're prepared for a zombie apocalypse, you're going to be ready for any of these other incidents to occur.”

During safety week, the agency will post and email safety tips for staying alive and safe in the event of a zombie apocalypse, the report said.

For example, families should designate meeting places near to and far afield of their home, because “zombies tend to gather in mobs, so you may wish to move further away in the event that the zombies choose to linger over lunch at your mailbox,” according to the report.

Ms. McDonnell said she got the idea from a “Zombie Preparedness” safety campaign sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year.

While the tips provided during HCS' campaign were peppered with zombie-specific advice, the general practices should be applied to plans for other, less otherworldly catastrophes like earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes.

“We all realize the importance of (safety), but oftentimes it's buried,” Ms. McDonnell told the Journal. “So this time we figured, let's make it a little more fun.”