Advice for people with disabilities
If you have a vision, hearing or mobility impairment an emergency will affect you differently. It is therefore important to consider how an emergency might affect you.
Advice for people with visual impairments
Talk to family, friends, assistants or other people in your life about how an emergency will affect you and what type of help you may need. Learn more about how we define an emergency.
How you will be notified
In an emergency poses a threat to life and health the City of Oslo or the police will send a text message to everyone in the affected area. Those who are visually impaired can get information and instructions on the use of a mobile phone from Statped (information in Norwegian) or Blindeforbundet (the Norwegian Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted). Warning systems (sirens) are also used to warn the public of immediate danger. If you hear the siren, it means you must seek information about what is happening, which can be found on the NRK P1 radio channel.
Where can I find information in an emergency?
Our websites have a universal design, and we will publish information about what is happening and how you can contact the municipality.
Who should I contact for help?
If you need help it is important that you ask for it. Consider whether you can ask for help from someone you know.
We will tell you how to contact the City of Oslo in the case of an emergency by a text message or on our website. We do not have a complete overview of all residents with visual impairments in the City of Oslo.
In the event of a power outage the mobile network may become unavailable after just a couple of hours. It is therefore essential that you do not wait to ask for help.
In the event of immediate danger to life and health call the emergency numbers 110, 112 and 113. Be aware that there may be reduced capacity during major emergencies, and it may therefore take longer than usual to get help.
Preparations at home
It is a good idea to have extra assistive devices at home such as canes, low-vision aids and magnifiers. If you take regular medications talk to your doctor or pharmacy about having an extra supply at home. A whistle and torch may be useful for signalling to others that you need help.
If you have a guide dog, you will need extra dog food for a couple of days. Guide dogs are permitted at evacuee and family centres.
Advice for people with hearing impairments
How you will be notified
In an emergency that threatens life and health the City of Oslo or the police will send a text message to everyone in the affected area. This message will be sent in both Norwegian and English. Follow the instructions given in the text message. You cannot reply to the text message.
Warning systems (sirens) are also used to warn the public of immediate danger. The warning systems are used together with text message notifications. If it is not possible to send text messages, you will not receive the notifications. Contact the people around you for information.
How do I find information during an emergency?
You can find more information on public websites, online newspapers, the radio, TV and social media. NRK has a special responsibility for broadcasting official information by the Norwegian authorities. You may also follow the Oslo police district on Twitter and Oslo Fire and Rescue on Twitter, where important information is rapidly made public.
We will post information on the City of Oslo’s website, where we will explain what has happened, what you should do and how you can get municipal assistance.
Who should I contact for help?
If you need help it is important to ask for it. Consider whether you can ask for help from someone you know.
We will explain how to contact the City of Oslo in an emergency by a text message or on our website. We do not have a complete overview of all residents with hearing impairments in the City of Oslo.
In the event of a power failure the mobile masts will only have emergency power for six hours. It is therefore essential that you do not wait to ask for help. Be aware that there may be reduced capacity during major emergencies, and it may therefore take longer than usual to get help.
In the event of immediate danger to life and health send a text message to the emergency numbers 110, 112 and 113. You must register in advance in order to send text messages. Go to nodsms.no to register for this service (information in Norwegian).
Preparations at home
To make sure you receive messages from the NRK P1 emergency radio channel you should have access to a battery-powered DAB radio. Contact Rådgivningskontoret for syn og hørsel (Advisory Centre for Vision and Hearing) for more information on assistive devices and aids (information in Norwegian).
Without power the electricity for the alerting devices that you use at home, e.g. for signalling a fire, the doorbell, etc. will no longer function. If you live alone, you should go and stay with family or friends or contact the City of Oslo for help to find an alternative place to stay.
In order to communicate more easily with others it is a good idea to have pen and paper available.
Advice for people with mobility impairments
See our advice for self-preparedness and about your own self-preparedness here.
Where to find information during an emergency
We will post information on the City of Oslo’s website, where we will explain what has happened, what you should do and how you can get municipal assistance.
Who should I contact for help?
If you need help it is important to ask for it. Consider whether you can ask for help from someone you know.
We will tell you how to contact the City of Oslo in an emergency by a text message or on our website. We do not have a complete overview of all residents with mobility impairments in the City of Oslo.
In the event of a power outage the mobile network may become unavailable after just a couple of hours. It is therefore essential you do not wait to ask for help.
In the event of immediate danger to life and health call the emergency numbers 110, 112 and 113. Be aware that there may be reduced capacity during major emergencies, and it may therefore take longer than usual to get help.
Preparations at home
Many people with mobility impairments use battery-powered assistive devices. Think about all the assistive devices you use in your daily life and how these would be affected by a prolonged interruption of power. Consider whether to have extra battery packs or similar assistive devices that can function without back-up electricity.