Disaster or crisis

• Go into the nearest building as soon as possible.
• Close all doors and windows. Also turn off any ventilation systems.
• Let people who ring your doorbell take shelter.
• Warn people who don't hear the siren.
• Tune in to the emergency broadcast station. This station provides information and instructions from the government. In the event of a disaster in your area, this is Omroep West. You can also visit the Hollands Midden Veilig website at . The live blog on this site will keep you immediately informed of any incidents in the area.
• In the event of a national disaster, the emergency broadcast station is NPO1 or NPO Radio 1.
• Visit Crisis.nl at . During an emergency, you'll find all the information about the disaster here.

If you need to leave your home and the surrounding area

• Turn off the gas, water, and electricity.
• Bring only the essentials.
• Lock up your home and make sure your neighbors know that an evacuation is taking place.
• In the event of a major fire, stay close to the ground and leave the building as quickly as possible. If you can't do that, stand by a window where the fire department can see you.

Transportation

• Bring as many other people as possible.
• Listen to the traffic reports on the radio.
• Follow the route indicated by the police.
• Go to the evacuation center or stay with family or friends outside the disaster area.
• Special transportation is available for people in need, the elderly, and students during a disaster or crisis. The institutions (nursing homes, senior living facilities, and/or schools) where these people are at the time will arrange for this.

What should I not do when the siren goes off?

• If the siren goes off, never call the national emergency number 112. Do not call the local police, fire department, or ambulance service either. This could overload the call centers, which would seriously delay the arrival of emergency assistance.
• Do not take your children out of school. Children who are at school must remain there and will be cared for by the school.

The government will notify you via NL-Alert about an emergency in your immediate vicinity. You will then receive a message on your cell phone. This message will explain what is happening and what you should do. NL-Alert is an additional emergency alert system.