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.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)