Emergency Kits

So, 6 months later - do you have an Emergency kit in place for your family?

Consider this - Backpacks are a great way to store them.  That way if you need to go, your hands are free.  Also, if you are including flashlights, (which you SHOULD!) consider head-lamps, again with the hands-free thing.   And realize that food will not be nearly as important as you  might imagine it to be.  Our stomachs were so tied up in knots we were not eating nearly as much as we usually do.   Some basic provisions such as Cliff bars or other high-energy, light-weight food is good, also consider comfort food, if it is easily stored, but keep your amounts on a more reasonable side, don't over-pack food.  Water, on the other hand, could become scarce quickly, over packing in this area is less likely.   Consider purchasing a back-packing style water filter.  They are light weight and might allow you to help others by providing water for them too.  Clothing packed into the backpack needs to include at least two changes of underwear and should ideally be stored in plastic bags, as the most likely need of a change of clothing is that you have gotten wet, and it does you no good to have a change of clothes, if they get wet, too.

I would also recommend that you keep yourself in the habit of keeping your gas tank more on the full side than the empty side.  Gasoline was available, but there was no power to pump it, so the lines at the few stations where they had generators big enough to do this job, were rather LONG.

Also include some cash in your emergency kit.  Debit cards were not useful until the power came back on.  Checks were useful, but I happened to be at the end of a checkbook, so having a spare in the emergency kit might be a good idea too.

And don't forget your pets.  We had to provide temporary housing for several of our pets who's usual cages were destroyed in the storm.  Having a spare cage around, to house pets in, in case of 'issues' is a very good idea. A spare leash for a dog might be a good addition to the kit too.  Even if you have a leash handy for your dog, other pets might be wondering around, disoriented, and you might want to assist them, and a spare leash will come in VERY handy!!

Communication could be an issue too - and here is where I'm preaching to myself - consider getting a ham radio license (I'm one of the last hold-outs in our family on this one).  We were fortunate to have gotten in touch with each other, via cell phone, immediately after the storm, and communicate a plan to each other.  By the time we left the house (three-plus hours later, cell towers were going down, due to lack of power and having used up their energy reserves.  They did not come back up until mid afternoon the next day and were spotty at best at that point.  Having the girls licensed and able to communicate with Lon was a HUGE help.

And another area where I'm preaching to myself - know where your 'essentials' are at all times.  Keys to the car, cell phone, wallet.  If you are not a purse carrier, as I was not, you might have to spend precious time searching for things, time that could be used helping other people instead.  Our keys to our truck went missing for nearly 48 hours.  It didn't matter, because our truck was stranded in the garage, but had it not been, we would have still been stuck, as the keys were lost in the storm, they were left on a counter, and the storm blew them into a drawer that we never would have thought to look in.  Consider keeping a spare key in, or hidden somewhere on, your vehicle.  I also used to be one who would set my phone down, who knows where, and have to call it to find it.  I'm much less that way now.  It is usually in my purse or on my night stand if it is not within arm's reach of where ever I'm sitting.

While I do STRONGLY believe that we need to trust that God will carry us through 'events' that might come our way - He CERTAINLY did us! - I also believe that there are basic precautions that we ought to take to be prepared so that we are not a burden on those around us. 

Thanks for keeping up on the blog - don't be afraid to leave a comment now and then - I'de love to hear from you!!