Emergency Preparedness: Got a Plan?
I’ve been thinking a lot about emergency preparedness lately, but the tragic earthquake in Haiti really drove home how unprepared my family is for an emergency of any kind. No cache of water, no extra stores of food. No plan about who is going to pick up which kid and meet where. In having these conversations with my husband, he wants to stash some cash and a gun somewhere in the house. And while that may (or may not!) seem extreme, it certainly seems easy enough to make sure we have some working flashlights and candles in the house. I can't imagine going even a couple days without using my cell phone, internet, or debit card, but I guess in a true crisis that is what we might be looking at. There are some great local resources for creating emergency kits and developing plans for locating and reconnecting with family members. Does your family have these things and what do they look like? Have you communicated to your kids, close friends, and family members what your plan is?
I am totally unprepared too. After reading The Road recently I realized that we really should have some food & water stashed away. My husband would like a gun too.
Posted by: cg | January 15, 2010 at 09:19 AM
Funny, my thoughts about emergency planning before the earthquake were prompted by reading Stephen King's "Under the Dome" over the holidays. Yes, my husband would like a gun as well. I'm curious if that is just a guy thing?
Posted by: andrea m. | January 15, 2010 at 09:24 AM
Having actually BEEN through a natural disaster (New Orleans, August 2005), I can say that there were a few things that were really helpful... and a gun wasn't one of them! ;-) Having all important id papers in one waterproof place that was easy to grab (passport, birth certificates, etc) was HUGE! Water was also important, as were snacks (protein & sweet) that didn't need cooking or refridgeration. Containers to secure pets for travel. More water. Flashlight. Lantern (for candle safety) Blankets - if it's warm, you can always sit on them. Baby wipes. Medicines. This takes up a lot of room, so you need to figure out where to stash it! Here's hoping no one here will ever need it...
Posted by: Nif | January 15, 2010 at 10:09 AM
We are tent campers and as my FIL pointed out, that has us well on our way to have an emergency kit. We store it in our shed - we built it ourselves so if the roof falls in we can lift it off. Unlike New Orleans where flood waters would have destroyed my kit, our house is more likely to be damaged by an earthquake so the shed works well.
I keep an extra tank of propane filled at all times which can run our camp heater and camp stove for days. Our sleeping gear and tent is also stored out there so we have shelter and warm bedding. We also have all the usual things like an ax, flashlights, matches, first aid kit, etc. We live with this equipment for a week or more when camping so it is a good start for three days of survival.
Posted by: sarah C | January 15, 2010 at 10:24 AM
If you haven't already please donate to help the people in Haiti. There are an estimated 50,000 dead and that number is expected to grow. People are without water and food. While we debate what to stock our emergency kits with, there are people right now, in desperate need of aid.
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/,
https://secure.oxfamamerica.org/site/Donation2?df_id=3560&3560.donation=form1
https://my.care.org/site/Donation2?5000.donation=form1&df_id=5000
https://secure.unicefusa.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6680&6680.donation=form1
Posted by: AHZ | January 15, 2010 at 10:26 AM
Wow, wasn't there another comment here earlier, to the effect that hey guys, now is maybe a good time to be donating what you can to the relief effort in Haiti, in addition to worrying about our own butts in potential future disasters?
Posted by: beth | January 15, 2010 at 06:30 PM
I posted it not sure why it got erased.....hmmmm?
Posted by: AHZ | January 15, 2010 at 07:46 PM
Agree about helping the efforts in Haiti. Also a good reminder that in a local disaster, you might be needing to help the neighbors too, so keep plenty in there. I was once told by a fire department person that comfort food needs to go into emergency kits. Sure MRE's are great, but don't forget the Snickers bars if that's what makes you feel happy.
I've had emergency kits since pre-2K. I'm changing the approach lately to staples that are ready to eat that we eat on a regular basis so that we make sure to cycle through the food before an emergency. There's of course a can opener, and a candle powered stove, flashlight, gallons of water, etc. In our locale, likely emergencies are weather related (ie. week long snowstorm) or earthquake. I keep the extra food in the pantry in bins in case we have the kind of emergency where we need to pack quickly. Unfortunately, we don't have any great place to put it if the house were to collapse.
We also keep a stash of cash in smaller denominations. This comes in handy for lesser emergencies, such as when we don't have time to get to a cash machine before a dinner where we'll have to split the bill. We just need to remember to replenish the stash.
Also, I used to have a small pack in the car that I'm trying to put back together. Handwarmers, bottles of water, a small first aid kit, are good. Someone just showed me some canned ready to eat meals made by St. Dalfour that I might start putting in there.
Otherwise, haven't a clue about everything else.
Posted by: Nat | January 15, 2010 at 09:47 PM
Hey All,
Great job on raising awareness! I am the owner of a Beaverton-based emergency preparedness store that has pre-made 72 hour kits and emergency plan templates to get you started. Please let me know if you have questions about how to best get started on the road to emergency preparedness, I would love to help! You can find my store here: http://www.readysetgokits.com and feel free to email me anytime at info@readysetgokits.com
Sincerely,
Amy Sandoz
Owner
Ready Set Go Kits
http://www.readysetgokits.com
Posted by: Amy Sandoz | January 16, 2010 at 07:14 AM
Are the deleted comments still gone? Not sure what happened there but please feel free to repost!
Posted by: urbanMamas | January 16, 2010 at 09:17 PM
As a firefighter I can tell you that preparedness goes beyond 'stuff.' Check out and become a Neighborhood Emergency Team member:
http://www.portlandonline.com/OEM/index.cfm?c=31667
Also--get (re)certified in CPR--another reason to know this skill and be able to help your family and others:
http://www.learncprpdx.com
We can all do well by each other to know how to and be able to help ourselves AND others.
Great topic!
Posted by: stellamama | January 16, 2010 at 09:57 PM
When we lived in Seattle a couple of years ago, I found a nifty cheat sheet about what foods to add to my grocery list so I wasn't breaking the bank in order to better prepare our family. If I recall correctly, it started with water and protein rich foods. If you don't have the storage for this stuff, you can store it in a large plastic garbage can. Date the foods and rotate regularly.
After Katrina, I spent money on an emergency kit from the Red Cross that includes water, first aid kit, flares, etc. I should check it to make sure it is current and accessible. I definitely need to work on my food and water stores again.
Posted by: Kelly Schneyer | January 17, 2010 at 11:20 PM
I'm curious if folks have a plan about how to pick up kids and reconnect with family. In the unexpected snow storm over the holidays, my cell phone wouldn't work and my husband and I spent a frustrating 30 minutes not knowing who was off to pick up which kid. Hardly an emergency, but I got a glimpse of how chaotic things could become if communication was disrupted for some reason.
Posted by: andrea m. | January 18, 2010 at 07:38 AM
With the New Year, we started thinking about emergency preparedness. I have a stash of water downstairs in the basement but that is about it for supplies in the house.
We have identified a place to meet on both sides of the river in case of a disaster.
On a smaller scale, we have also started pulling things together to have in the cars in case of a breakdown...flares, emergency blankets, food, etc.
It is hard to think of myself in a disaster situation but the footage I have seen from Haiti certainly provides a vivid reminder of how dire things can get.
Posted by: Ted G | January 19, 2010 at 10:00 PM
I would like to share my disaster preparedness/urban survival website with everyone here.
It's a site that is perfect for beginners, all the way to the most advanced prepper alive!
I have lists of supplies you should stock, helpful tips and tricks as well as prepared kits so you KNOW you're ready.
Unlike most sites, I offer many ways to communicae with my users, from open community blogs, to private (direct) e-mail to ask me any question you may have about survival/preparedness.
Posted by: Survival Time | January 22, 2010 at 08:57 PM
Glad to see so many getting into preparedness mode. It's also great to see the offers of help.
http://www.destinysurvival.com
Posted by: John | February 01, 2010 at 03:19 PM