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Thursday, 9 January 2014
Deal extreme
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Saturday, 4 January 2014
Million Dollar Perspective: Not prepared for a disaster
Million Dollar Perspective: Not prepared for a disaster: Ice Storm 2013 The ice storm of 2013 was certainly an experience, but one thing I learned very quickly was how unprepared we were ...
Not prepared for a disaster
Ice Storm 2013
The ice storm of 2013 was certainly an experience, but one thing I learned very quickly was how unprepared we were for a disaster. We were lucky that this wasn't a true disaster, and we had plenty of friends and family who helped us out, like bringing us food, portable heaters, and a place to stay if we needed it. However, what if this was a true disaster, like an earth quake, flood, or other emergency?
With the loss of power come side affects you may not think of. There will be no gasoline available. (Without power, there is no way to pump the gas.) You might be far from home. Your car's heater might be your only source of heat. The money in your pocket will have to last until power is returned. Some supplies may be available, but buying some items like a manual can opener will be impossible. Cash cards will be useless if power or phone lines are lost. Many stores will have a hard time opening since items don't have prices on them anymore, thanks to scanning cash registers! You get the picture.
Since we lost power, it meant that everything in a 30km radius also lost power.
Gasoline: Our car had only a quarter of a tank, so we were careful not to drive long distances, but what if there was an evacuation? What would we have done? I know this sounds silly, but in reality, if this was an emergency, we would be stuck. So now we try to keep our tank full as much as possible.
Food: Sure our fridge was full, but 3 days without power, most of our food spoiled. Luckily I keep my pantry pretty full, but canned foods were limited, so if there was a true emergency, what would we rely on for food? Seriously, when everything is closed, where would you go, what would you do? I now stock our pantry with enough canned goods to last a few days.
Cash: I know I'm not alone here, most people rely on debit or credit cards these days, its just easier, and few keep cash on hand, think about it for a sec, where would you find goods like food, water, or gasoline if there's no power, so now, we keep at least $20 in our pockets. I know that wont get us far, but it could make the difference between life and death.
Flash lights: We camp, I have lots of flashlights, so you'd think I would be well prepared in this area. Wrong, first I couldn't find them, secondly, we didn't have batteries. So now, we keep our large flashlight charged. Even candles, I keep them all over the house now.
Communication: In this day and age, we rely on computers, cordless phones, and cell phones, well, guess what, no power, the only communication you can rely on is your cell phone, providing that you have charged it. Mine was running on 30%, and the only way I could charge it was in the car. We have a home line, but that was out too, so my advise, is always keep your cell phone charged. Something else we did not have was a portable radio, so I have purchased batteries, and will keep them in a safe place in case we need them. I will also be aware of their shelf life. Get to know your neighbours, in case of emergency, they may be the only ones you can communicate with in the event of an emergency.
Medications: I suffer from bi-polar, my medications are important, I always make sure I have at least a weeks supply, but assume you are the kind of person who waits until the last minute to renew your meds, what would you do, especially for more serious illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, etc.., the drug stores were closed, you would be in big trouble. So make sure you are on top of that too, even something as simple as ibuprofen. Keep your medical emergency kits stocked, like bandages, disinfectants, etc.
Although I do not consider this a true emergency, it sure was a wake up call. For more information on what to do.. go to....
for more information.
Be safe, be prepared.
Thursday, 2 January 2014
Surviving the ice storm of 2013
Ice storm 2013
The ice storm of 2013 was incredibly beautiful, I took out my camera and shot pictures everyday. Everything glistened, all the tree's looked like crystal. The only unfortunate thing is that we lost power for 3 days.
The first day was manageable because we kept thinking that the power would come back any minute now. The temperature in the house was dropping, so I pulled out the blankets and lit all the candles.
The following day, since there were no stores open, all the street lights were out, and driving became quite dangerous, we made do with snuggling up with the dogs, reading books, and using the barbeque when we needed to eat.
We heard through the grape vine that Wendy's and Tim Horton's had power, but we had to drive all the way into Oshawa, not that big a deal for a hot coffee and burger, plus we were able to get out of the cold for a little while. Luckily my son was working at the hospital, and my other son was invited to his friends home that had power.
Christmas Eve success.
Day 3 was the worst, by this time, I couldn't warm up, the house was at 51 degrees, and I started to make calls to my family to make other arrangements for Christmas Eve. I always host the event, preparing days in advance, so this year, we were all in a panic because we heard we wouldn't get power until after Christmas. We're quite fortunate to having such wonderful friends, some came to drop off propane heaters, while others invited us to their home for dinner. We were about to pack up when the power suddenly came on. What a joy, what chaos. With only a few hours until Christmas eve, I began to work, preparing food for my guests, cleaning the house, and running around trying to get things done.
Amazingly enough, with everyone's help, we managed to have one of the greatest Christmas eves, there was so much food, love and laughter.
The ice storm of 2013 was a great example of people helping each other, making sure we were warm, with countless invites to warm homes, families banding together to care for each other.
We lost a neighbour 3 hours before the power came back due to carbon monoxide poisoning. I was shocked and saddened by this news, because in crisis, there is always the news of people losing there lives, but when it's so close to home, you realize that all of the fuss over the holidays mean nothing compared to the love you share with each other.
If there is anything I learned during this time, is to take care of each other, rely on loved ones and friends, don't be afraid to ask for help, and be there to help your neighbour in times of need.
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