Bucket Kit

    Seems as though nearly every prepper has one problem in common.  Where to store their supplies.  Some folks use plastic totes, some use paper boxes and one solution I have found to meet most needs is the five-gallon plastic bucket.  Available everywhere, they are waterproof, bug proof, dust proof, mouse proof and big enough to hold a decent amount of equipment and supplies.  On the other hand, they aren’t so big you can’t carry one full of gear.  Buckets are not only portable, but stackable and they come with a handle. 

    Food-grade plastic buckets are available at most hardware stores.  Check the paint department and if the five gallon size is too much to handle, there are 2.5 gallon sizes available.  To keep things in perspective, at 8.34 pounds per gallon, a five gallon bucket of water will weigh 41.7 pounds.  For those of us who qualify as seasoned citizens, nearly 42 pounds may be  a bit more than we want to lug around.  You may want to opt for the smaller size just for the sake of management or storage space.  Still to keep your supplies dry and spider-less, they are a great solution.  

    Some will mention that once you get that lid sealed on, it is murder to get open.  I have two solutions:  First pick up a lid-lifter.  That’s a plastic tool designed especially for prying up the lip on a bucket, making your job easier.  Available at the hardware store for about $6.00  Pick up a couple and zip-tie one to a bucket handle.  That way you don’t have to hunt for an opener when you need one.  Second, learn about gamma-seal lids.  Home Depot carries them for $7.25.  A gamma seal lid snaps tight to the bucket, just like the regular lid.  The advantage is the center of the lid unscrews to access the inside of the bucket without going to all the manual labor of prying the lid off.  The center is easily replaceable and still maintains the airtight integrity of the bucket.  Whichever method you choose, it will make your life easier should the need arise for immediate access to your gear.

    A five-gallon bucket also makes a great makeshift toilet.  No one likes to think about sanitary needs during a disaster, but sooner or later everyone needs a potty.  Several companies make a snap-on toilet seat to fit a bucket.  Line it with a plastic kitchen garbage bag and you’re set to “go”.  (Sorry.)  It solves a problem most people don’t want to think about until it’s too late.

    If you plan carefully, an entire 72 hour kit will fit nicely into a five-gallon bucket.  (Check my blog for a list.)  Let me caution you though, a 72 hour kit is a bare minimum.  Disasters know nothing of 72 hour time limits.  Ask the folks who just survived Hurricane Florence.  You may want to have another for your car.  Have you ever considered how you would fare if disaster struck while you were away from home?  Do you have the items you need to spend the night away from home unexpectedly?  That plastic bucket just may be the ticket for your disaster preparedness plan.   

    As always send your comments and questions to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com and other online booksellers.

Generator Time

    A year ago Hurricane Maria slammed into  Puerto Rico.  That island nation is still trying to recover.  For a nation already struggling with economic collapse, their oh-so-fragile electrical grid was destroyed and still hasn’t been fully restored.  Granted chaotic political factors may have contributed to their woes, but the bottom line is still many areas are without electrical service one year later.  

    Those of us living elsewhere in our great nation are rarely without electrical service.  Folks who recently found themselves in the path of Hurricane Florence discovered dozens of electrical service trucks from all over the country parked in local motel and Wal-Mart parking lots.  In an effort to minimize downtime of electrical power the federal government ordered a massive pre-staging of workers and equipment days before the storm was predicted to make landfall.  Still, thousands of folks had to deal with outages for several days.  

    The solution for many is to buy a portable generator.  A generator is likely one of the most expensive investments you will make as a prepper, therefore it is important you choose wisely.   First of all decide if there really is a need.  Buying a 9000 watt generator to keep your TV, Xbox, and wifi running is a nice plan, but those really aren’t necessities.  For some folks, using a portable generator (gen-set) to pump water out of the well might rank as a higher priority.  For me personally, I bought a half beef not long ago and would prefer not to lose it just because I can’t keep it frozen.  Then there is the person who needs to get their car out and that garage door opener needs electricity to operate.  (Although most modern units have a battery backup system.)  Most refrigerators use electricity and many consider it a “need” to keep their food cold.

    Do your research, add up the wattage you absolutely need. Then make your decision.  Don’t forget to read the reviews of units that catch your interest. One of the best generator buying guides is on Northern Tool & Equipment’s website. According to Northern Tool, here is a list of questions you should ask yourself:

• What is the generator's wattage capacity and will it support your needs, including startup surge power required by some equipment?
• Does the generator have enough outlets to plug in all of the items you want to power?
• How noisy is the generator? Are there noise restrictions in your neighborhood?
• What type of fuel does it use?
• How large is the fuel tank and how many hours of operation will it provide?
• Is the generator easy to move around? Does it have built-in wheels and handles for portability?
• What accessories will I need to run the generator (fuel, heavy-duty extension cords, transfer switch)?

These are all qualifiers you need to discuss before you make the plunge.  Also don’t forget to look for bargains on Craigslist (or similar websites), garage sales or local shopper ads.  Now for the downside; Generators take fuel.  Consider how you’re going to store that much fuel.  Today’s ethanol-infused gasoline is prone to attracting water and water can diminish the quality of your gasoline.  Some folks use non-ethanol gasoline and set it aside solely for their generator.  Others use products such as Sta-bil which can be used to extend the life of stored gasoline.

There are a few rules about generator use.  Never use it indoors.  That seems like an overly cautious warning, but every year someone parks their generator in their garage, closes the door and there’s a disaster.  Carbon monoxide from a generator is just as deadly as from your car.  Then there’s the guy that figured out if he wired a male plug on both ends of an extension cord, he could power up his whole house.  Bad idea!  That can overload your home’s circuits, and possibly kill a lineman miles away working on what he thinks is a dead line.

Do your research, read the reviews and make a decision based on your need, not some advertisers slick campaign.  Or you can email your questions and comments to me at disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com and other online booksellers.                                       

Disaster Preparedness Month

    Each year, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (F.E.M.A.) designates the month of September as Disaster Preparedness Month.  The idea is, I’m sure, to nudge would-be preppers to get off their couches and finally do something about preparedness.

    Winter months are approaching, bringing with them news of blizzards, winter storms coming in off the Pacific, and even as I write this, Hurricane Florence is threatening the eastern seaboard.  According to F.E.M.A.’s website (www.ready.gov), now is the time to take that CPR or first aid class.  Also check your insurance policies and find out if you actually have the insurance coverage you’re going to need in the face of the disasters you might face like flood, earthquake or tornado.  Additionally, now is a good time to start setting aside a little cash to cover the costs associated with an emergency.  Besides, when disaster strikes, ATMs are usually disabled and all the money in your checking and savings account down at First National will do you no good.  Only the cash you have on hand will be accessible and available for purchasing goods or services.  What few items are usually available during emergencies.  Likewise, now is a good time to review the process for shutting off water, natural gas and propane valves.  And don’t forget to locate the right-size wrench in a handy location.

    F.E.M.A. has designated a theme for each week of the month.  Week 1:  Make and practice your plan.  Week 2:  Learn Life Saving Skills  Week 3: Check Your Coverage.  Week 4: Save For an Emergency.  For a more complete list of specific activities, go to www.ready.gov.

    Following these simple themes each week will raise your preparedness level and make you more ready for whatever winter throws at you.  

    Here’s a new offering from F.E.M.A.:  Text PREPARE to 43362 (4FEMA) to receive  preparedness tips on your phone.  Keep in mind that standard messaging and data rates apply.

    Likewise the Red Cross (www.redcross.org) has several suggestions for the month.  Their focus is on evacuation and highlights of their list include the following:  1.  Follow the instructions of the authorities when it comes to evacuating.  They know more than you do.  2.  Keep your gas tank topped off when you hear a storm is coming.  After the power goes out it’s usually difficult to make gas pumps work.  3.  Decide ahead of time where you are going to go.  Either Aunt Tillie’s or just getting your RV to a safe place requires prior planning on your part.  And don’t forget to give Aunt Tillie a call to let her in on your plan.  4.  And lastly, don’t forget your pets.  Pick up an extra sack of dog (or cat) food.  Also get a one-gallon canteen, fill with water and include it in your plan.  Pets need water too. 

    As always send your comments and questions to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com, barnesandnoble, and other online booksellers.

   

Tactical Air Support

Every so often, I’ve had questions from readers regarding food supplies.  Somewhere, folks have gotten the idea the government (or some relief agency) has massive amounts of food and supplies stockpiled in their neighborhood ready to roll out when the need arises.  Truth is, there are no stockpiles, only what individual families and some charitable organizations have on hand.  Back in the Civil Defense days of the 1950’s, there were some isolated M.A.S.H. units tucked away in undisclosed public buildings.  (That’s Mobile And Surgical Hospitals, for those of you who don’t remember the TV series of the same name.)  The last unit I knew of was located on the grounds of a regional airport in my home county.  The only reason I was aware of it was because it fell to my shoulders to dismantle and dispose of the fifty-year old cots, equipment and supplies.  The only things lacking were the personnel and current medicines.

Today there a few isolated community “prepper” groups who have acquired a storage container or two and have begun accumulating supplies, but nothing significant.  Certainly not sufficient to provide for an entire community in the event of disaster.  Government officials assure us they will swoop in with supplies if there is ever a major earthquake event or notable disaster.  We’ve all seen how well that worked with Katrina, Andrew and a few other hurricanes in the Southeast.  Although I will admit F.E.M.A,’s responses have much improved since Katrina. 

Recently a news article came my way announcing an exercise conducted the weekend of July 12-15 here on the Oregon Coast.  Titled “The Cascadia Airlift Exercise”, the article says the 173rd Fighter Wing of Little Rock Air Force Base will be bringing some C-130 aircraft to Oregon to participate.  They will practice loading and unloading cargo from the C-130s giving their crews the opportunity to evaluate their aerial logistics capabilities in the event of a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake.  The article goes on to say the airmen will be testing aircraft arrival plans, parking plans, cargo loading as well as fuel and maintenance support.  For further information, check out Klamath Alerts website at https://klamathalerts.com.  (Used by permission.)  I’m grateful for this effort and would encourage more of the same.  Just in case!

Many Oregonians are aware of the threat posed by the Cascadia Subduction Zone and its violent history.  While it’s good to see planners are taking steps to mitigate any disaster, it is still vitally important for individuals to have their own preparation plans.

No matter where you are, take a few minutes to send your congressman or senator a quick email and ask what the disaster preparations are for your locale.  Now is the time to get your representatives thinking about covering your backside in the event of an emergency. I’m sure this just might turn into an opportunity for you to get involved and make a difference for your community.

Send your comments and questions to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and other online booksellers.

School Shootings

Hardly a week goes by anymore that we don’t hear of a school shooting.  A generation ago such an incident was entirely unheard of, and the term “school shooting” was a foreign concept.  Now we all know immediately what happened.  Some nutjob decided to make a name for himself by shooting up a school, including the taking of innocent life and more often than not, taking his own life when he’s backed into a corner.

Every time this happens, I seem to have difficulty sorting out my feelings.  Anger, that this could happen to innocent lives, both students and teachers.  Frustration that we, as a nation, can’t seem to put a stop to these tragedies.  And then there’s always the call by high-decibel politicians for more and stricter gun laws.  If a person is deranged enough to shoot up a school, is he really going to be deterred by one more law?  

This is the nightmare every school administrator prays never happens.  Police officers train and school administrators plan for what they hope will never happen on their watch.  Lockdown drills are held in schools all across the country. Some states even require periodic lockdown drills.  But no amount of preplanning can cover every contingency.  Every police officer, paramedic and emergency room worker knows that scared people behave badly.  That’s when dozens of mildly (to not-so-mildly)  anxious parents begin arriving at schools to pick up not only their own children, but in some cases, their friends’ kids as well.  Phone calls clogged lines into the administrative offices, and traffic flow problems restrict the movement of school busses. Add to this certain school policies designed to keep kids safe by restricting who can pick up whom and you’ve got the recipe for a secondary disaster.  

Now take this to the next level.  Let's suppose there is a natural disaster.  We’ll use “earthquake” just for the sake of discussion.  The roads are busted up, the phone lines are completely down, electrical power is out and the schools are full of our kids.  Have you discussed this scenario with your family?  Do you have a plan to reunite your family if this happens?  Even if schools can deliver your children home, is anyone going to be there?  Who have you authorized to pick up your children at the school if you can’t get there?  Do your kids know what to do?  These are all questions families need to address and get settled now, before something happens.

Likewise, schools need to work on disaster planning.  Is there a drill that can be designed to simulate a disaster and how do we pull it off.  Something that goes beyond the lockdown or the “soft lockdown”.  How do we make it work when nothing else (like phones) does?   Fire drills are proven to save lives and have for decades.  Lockdown drills, unscheduled school closure drills and serious disaster drills will save lives as well.  

As always send your questions and comments to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com. Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com and other online booksellers.

More About Water

Some months back, I was asked to speak at a Disaster Preparedness Fair.  After my prepared remarks, an innocent-looking “seasoned-citizen” lady raised her hand and asked if I could explain the difference between filtering and purifying water.  

Storing water is the number-one item mentioned on both the Red Cross and F.E.M.A.web pages.  We humans are designed so that water is a necessity and to deprive ourselves of water for very long is not recommended.  I had mentioned, during my presentation, that a means of purifying water is one of the essentials if you’re going to consider yourself prepared for a disaster.  

My response to the question went something like this:  Filtering is just that.  Causing the water to pass through something (a filter) that removes the offending elements. Elements such as bacteria, bugs and other things that can make you sick.  Purifying can be infusing the water with chemicals such as chlorine to kill the bacteria, parasites, or other illness-causing factors.  Boiling is the simplest way to purify and requires no chemicals.  Either boiling or chemically treating the water is an effective way of achieving purity or drinkability of your water source. 

Later, when I had returned to my book-booth, the innocent-looking questioner came for a visit.  After reminding me she was the one who had asked the question about making water drinkable, she informed me she was a retired microbiologist.  Talk about being set up!  “So, how’d I do?” I inquired.  Her response indicated I had somehow muddled my way through and provided an acceptable answer.

Water is that thing we so easily take for granted.  And here in our country, pure water is a given.  Bottled water is so common, and so commonly purchased we don’t give it a second thought when we pick up a case of purified/filtered water at the store.  Consider this, in the event of a disaster, the supply lines are interrupted, the stores aren’t getting their shipments and the municipal water supply isn’t producing.  The water in the rivers or rain falling from the sky may be your only option.  Are you set up to purify or filter? Either way will make water useful for your drinking needs.

Personally I have a Big Berkey filter that uses two ceramic filters to remove the creepy-crawlies.  There are other kits sold online that will do the same thing.  But the primary thing to keep in mind, if you get sick from drinking contaminated water, your chances of making it through the disaster just got worse.  So be prepared to either purify or filter.  Either way works, but getting ill from impure water is not an attractive alternative.  Especially during a time of disaster.

As always send your comments and questions to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us,” available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and other online booksellers.

Decisions Decisions

Back in my flying days, I read with interest stories of airplane accidents.  Several months following an accident, the National Traffic Safety Board (NTSB) usually issued a detailed and very complete report on what led up to the accident.  More often than not, the accident was not a sudden, traumatic event causing an accident.  But rather a decision made by the pilot or an incident occurring several hours before the event that led to disaster.  Maybe it was failure to top off a fuel tank, or a decision to fly in spite of a bad weather report.  Sometimes it is a culmination of seemingly insignificant decisions or events that result in a “tipping point” leading to an unfortunate conclusion.  

Last Friday, my 18 year old grandson received a call for help from one of his friends.  It seems the friend was stranded in a remote area. “Can you come pull me out, we’re stuck in the snow?”

My grandson filled me in on what was happening and I quickly loaded him with tow strap, extra gasoline, and a few other items we thought would come in handy.  His 4 x 4 Toyota Tacoma is equipped with traction tires and is in good running order.  He had already contacted another friend to accompany him on the mission.

It seems as though the stranded friend was on his way home from college for the weekend when a multi-vehicle accident had clogged the interstate.  He and his companion had made a decision to cut across the Coast Range mountains of Southwestern Oregon from Grants Pass to the Coast.  Normally this Forest Service/BLM road is easily passable in a car, but this time of year, there is often snow accumulation at the higher elevations.  Things went pretty well for about an hour after leaving the Interstate, that is until the pair reached one of those higher elevations. Topping a hill, they ran into snow, and then plowed their way down hill.  All was good until they came to another rise, this one covered in deeper snow which stalled their two-wheel drive car.  Turning around, they found they were unable to climb back up the snow-covered road and there they were, unable to go either way.

Providence had smiled on the stranded couple by granting cell phone service even in this remote area.  Those of us who play in the backcountry know all too well coverage can be sketchy at best in many locations. In this case, they were able to successfully make a call for help.

When I interviewed the young man, he said they were equipped with some granola bars, some bottles of water and a few bottles of Gatorade.  Even if they had to spend the night, there were also blankets in the car.  He agreed leaving the Interstate wasn’t the best plan, but at the time he and his companion agreed they could save some time taking the back roads when their option was to wait four hours for the traffic to clear.

This story has a happy ending for several reasons.  Cell phone coverage made it possible to call for help.  The rescue team was able to reach the stranded vehicle and get them back onto a bare, snow-free road.  Finally the stranded pair, although making a questionable decision to use the back roads, had enough snack food, drinks and blankets to survive a short time without major discomfort.

I was reminded of the family from San Francisco a few years back who became lost in this same general area.  They tried to take a similar shortcut and lost their way in the maze of logging roads and ultimately were stranded by snowfall.  After nine days the husband/father struck out on foot to seek rescue.  His body was found a few days later.  The mother and both children survived.  

This kind of story has always fascinated me.  The little things folks do or didn’t do can make a difference between survival or not.  Life and death.  And many times those choices are made hours or even days before the event.  The lesson is this:  When you venture out into the arms of Mother Nature, be wise, she’s not always in a nurturing mood.

As always, send your comments or questions to disasterprep.dave@gmail.com.  Dave Robinson is a retired Postmaster and lives in Myrtle Point, Oregon.  He is the author of “Disaster Prep For The Rest Of US,” available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and other online booksellers.