Lightning Strike

If you’ve been reading this column for a while then you know I always encourage everyone to carry a get-home bag.  Some call it a “bug-out” bag or a “go” bag.  But because disasters don’t always happen while you’re snugly at home, you should have some items, supplies and tools with you to help you function (translated: keep you alive) until you can get home.  Everyone’s bag will be different.  Mine includes some extra blood pressure pills, some food, something with which to purify drinking water, some clean socks and other clothing items (no need to go into intimate detail here) and something I can use to start a fire.  

    Depending on your travel habits, your individual bag will be custom designed by you to meet your lifestyle.  There are literally hundreds of companies online that are happy to sell you a ready-made kit, but again if you’re a veteran reader, you know that I advocate building your own kit.  You get to choose the items YOU will need for your particular situation AND you get to pick quality products to fill up your bag.  In other words, you are invested in your own survival and there is no need to outsource that responsibility to someone who doesn’t even know you.  

    If you need ideas on what to put in your kit, then by all means look over the list of contents on some of the better kits, but build your own.

    From time to time, I offer my opinion on a particular product you may want to consider for your kit.  Every kit needs some means of alternative fire starter just because you may want to start a fire to keep warm.  Imagine being out in the hills, hunting, firewood-getting, or just sightseeing and all of a sudden you slide off the road.  Or a fallen tree blocks your egress.  Or you find yourself behind a locked gate.  Building a fire would be one of the things you’d want to do to keep warm, keep you company and maybe even heat up some food.  

    I recently came into possession of a “Lightning-Strike” fire starter.  There are dozens of products available that use this technology.  It is a variation of the old flint and steel although none of these products actually use flint anymore, rather it consists of something called ferrocerium.  Commonly referred to as a ferro rod. When you grind a piece of steel against a ferro rod, a spark is produced.  

    The Lightning-Strike fire starter is about the size of a Mini-mag flashlight.  Constructed of machined, anodized aluminum it is an ingenious design which contains dry tinder in the water-tight handle storage area and a tubular-slotted barrel which houses the ferro rod. When the steel striker grinds against the ferro rod, a spark is ejected from the end of the barrel.  Because of the larger-than-average ferro rod and a larger- than-average steel striker, the spark this thing gives off is significantly bigger than any similar device I have used.  And because of the “shotgun barrel” design, you can direct the spark to go where you want.  Invented in Powers, Oregon, by Darrell Holland and sold from his website (www.hollandguns.com), this could be the perfect addition to your collection of necessities.

Now for the downside:  It’s not cheap.  The $60.00 price tag could put some folks off, but this is after all, the Christmas shopping season and if you’re looking for that perfect gift for your outdoorsman or prepper-dude (or dudette) then you can’t go wrong with the Lightning Strike.  It is a quality product, easy to use and well thought-out.  I’m very pleased with mine and show it off every chance I get.

As always, send your questions and comments to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is the Postmaster in Bandon, Oregon, and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us”.

Lightning Strike II

Back in December, I wrote a column about a product to which I was recently introduced.  It’s a fire-starting device called a Lightning Strike. Several weeks back I had opportunity to use mine. Check out blog post dated December 7, 2014.  

Each year on Memorial Day weekend I take my two grandsons on a little trip.  We drive over to Central Oregon and camp out in a little campground that lies right next to a big tract of BLM land near Fort Rock. One afternoon we decided to ride up to Hole-In-The-Ground (look it up).  My 8 year old grandson was riding with me on my four-wheeler and were about three miles from camp when a windy rain shower blew in and we were getting drenched and cold.

I drove off the trail and dropped down out of the wind into a fair-sized gully where we hunkered down in the lee of a big burned-out stump.  The stump was open on one side and we set about gathering some kindling and dry sticks and laid a small fire inside the stump.  I dug my Lightning Strike out of the pack on my ATV, shoved a couple of the tinder pucks under the kindling and handed the fire starter to my grandson.  After only two strikes on the ferro rod, the pucks caught the spark and in minutes we had a nice little fire going.

Now I realize this wasn't exactly a "survival" situation, nor we were ever in any actual danger, but that little fire warmed us and taught my grandson a valuable lesson. (Besides making a pretty cool memory.)

The rain shower passed and we extinguished the fire, making sure it was safe to leave untended and proceeded on with our ride.

For more information or you’d like to get your hands on one check out www.hollandguns.com.  

Just thought you'd like to know.

    Kids Prep

Several months ago our electricity failed one evening in the midst of a wind storm.  The lights blinked twice and then total darkness.  Flashlights in hand we fired up our Coleman lantern and settled down for an evening of “camping in”.  After a couple of hours of primitive living, my six year old grandson asked when the power was coming back on.  I took some time to tell him about what might have happened to cause the outage and that right this minute there were crews out there working in the dark and the wind and rain to bring the electricity back.  I assured him that by morning we would probably have our lights again.  Sure enough, by the time we got up, electrical power was restored.  There were no episodes of fear or overt insecurity, just the horrid inconvenience of trying to adjust to life without TV or x-box for the evening.

Children learn to take their cues from from the adults in their lives.  If the grownups are panicked, then children will likewise be undone.  When the adults have made some simple preparations and are ready to handle the unexpected, it can serve well to bring stability and avoid all the drama associated with fears.  Secondly, it is time well spent to explain what has happened, what is being done to fix things and how soon things might be expected to return to normal.  You might ask if they are afraid.  What are you afraid of?  Reassure them that you are there with them and nothing bad is going to happen.  Tell them you have plenty of food and supplies and remind them that they are warm and secure because you are a wise and caring parent you have already prepared for just such an emergency.  No worries!

Disaster preparedness for kids can be a fun and exciting activity. Getting their own backpack and emergency gear can become a game.  Picking out the perfect flashlight (don’t forget extra batteries), gathering extra clothing and a spare toothbrush makes your kids feel like they’re a part of the grand solution.  The internet is loaded with resources for kids.  FEMA (www.ready.gov) has games, puzzles, cartoons and something called “Readiness U”.  Your children can even earn a certificate of graduation when they master Knowing the Facts, Making a Plan, Building a Kit, then they earn the right to graduate from Readiness U.  How can you go wrong when you have help from Flat Stanley and Flat Stella to help your kids navigate their way to preparedness?  Even NASA has a website designed especially for kids that offers tips on surviving hurricanes and other hazards.

So when you’re making your plan and getting your kit together, involve the kids.  They’re always part of the plan anyway and they love to be involved in preparedness.  As always send your comments and questions to  disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.   Dave Robinson is the Postmaster in Bandon, Oregon, and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us.”