What are the chances of you or Mom ending up in a nursing home?

Updated statistics will be coming out after the next census, but right now it looks as though the chances of a senior citizen spending time in a nursing home or skilled care facility are about 1 in 4.

This should immediately bring to mind the 14 people who died last year in Florida when their nursing home air conditioning failed. You may even remember tragic images from Katrina.

Reassure yourself about emergency preparedness in care facilities you are considering!

I’ve been searching for professional advice on this topic, and I found it on one of my LinkedIn groups.  After a series of back and forth messages, Nicholas Thorpe kindly agreed to provide Emergency Plan Guide readers with questions to ask.

You’ll see that his questions fit right in with the way we try to learn more about being better prepared.  Please check out his expert article below, and share with other family members and friends. 

Long-Term Care and Emergency Preparedness — Knowing the Right Questions to Ask

By Nicholas Thorpe,  8/2/2018

When considering long-term care facilities, we all look to ratings, accreditations and high standards.  One of the most overlooked considerations, however, is emergency and disaster preparedness.  Does the facility you are considering have plans in place for adverse conditions, be it man-made or natural disaster?

New rules for emergency preparedness in care facilities are now in effect.

Following Hurricane Katrina, the Center for Medicare/Medicaid Services (CMS) began to work on new rules to govern how emergency preparedness should be handled at various medical facilities. In the fall of 2017, the new rules for emergency preparedness went into effect for seventeen (17) health care provider types (to include long-term care facilities). These rules are meant to correct the lack of preparedness that was seen following Hurricane Katrina and other major disasters.

These seventeen (17) provider types are now required to be in compliance with the emergency preparedness rule as part of their eligibility to receive reimbursement for services and care through Medicare and Medicaid. These rules can be found on the CMS website at New Rules .

My role now in a health care preparedness coalition in central North Carolina is to work with health care facilities so they are better prepared for emergencies and disasters and to help them comply with the new CMS emergency preparedness rule.

Ten questions to ask as you evaluate emergency preparedness in care facilities.

The following questions will help you evaluate the level of emergency preparedness as you consider care facilities for your family member:

1. Are you regulated by CMS and do you comply with the new Emergency Preparedness Rule?
   1. Have you been surveyed recently?
2. What methods will you use to contact me should something happen to my family member or following an emergency or disaster?
   1. Do you have any additional methods you can utilize to contact me?
   2. Who/how can I contact the facility to learn the status of my family member during/following an emergency or disaster?
3. Does your facility have a way to transport residents that is not reliant on local emergency services agencies in the event an evacuation is necessary?
4. Does your facility have any agreements in place with other sites to relocate residents in the event of an evacuation?
5. Does your facility have a generator that powers the HVAC system (heating and air conditioning) and refrigeration for the entire facility?
6. How many extra days of food do you have on site should your supply chain be disrupted?
7. How is security maintained in the facility?
8. Has your staff had active shooter response training?
9. Is your staff trained in providing first aid, CPR, and applying tourniquets?
10. How often do you practice emergency procedures that aren’t fire drills?

Choosing a facility should not be solely based on how prepared it is for an emergency. How it is prepared, however, should be high on your list of criteria when deciding who should take care of the people who mean the most to you.

Nicholas Thorpe works for the CapRAC Healthcare Preparedness Coalition in Raleigh, North Carolina.  He has completed more than 1,000 hours of emergency preparedness training, trained over 200 first responders and over 1,000 volunteers in emergency management procedures. Nicholas holds a Graduate Certificate in Homeland Security from the George H.W. Bush School of Public Service at Texas A&M University, and a Bachelor of Arts in history with a minor in political science from The American University in Washington, DC.

Please share this important information widely. There are other questions you can add to this list, but these will get the conversation started.

Thanks again to Nicholas!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

A couple of years ago we wrote an article that’s a good companion to this one: Leave the disabled behind? 
This is a topic we’ll be addressing more in the future.

 

 

How well will your kid do in answering these school preparedness questions?

Last time we listed some school preparedness questions to take with you to a Back to School meeting.

(I trust you realize that some of them will make your teachers or administrators uncomfortable.)

Today we’re turning the spotlight around, and shining it right on your kids – and thus on you as a parent.

Some of these school preparedness questions for kids are bound to make YOU uncomfortable!

The reason?

You will not be there when something happens at school! If you haven’t worked through these questions, you may not be able to count on  your kids when it really matters.

These school preparedness questions are meant to instill confidence, not fear.

If you live in the country or spend time camping or even scouting, your kids may “score” well on the following questions. If your kids don’t have access to those experiences, you’ll want to start building some of them into your everyday lifestyle. Over-protective parents don’t do their kids any favors.

Obviously, the “correct” answer to any of these school preparedness questions for kids depends on the age of the child, where you live, etc.

On the way to school – preparedness questions for kids 

• Does your child know his or her full name? In an emergency, just a first name alone won’t do! Get your kids in the habit of always answering “What’s your name?” with their full name, so it will become automatic.
• Has your child memorized key phone numbers and addresses – at least one or two? (Have you?) Yes, all names may be in your phone’s database, or your kid’s phone’s database, but you have to assume that in an emergency (earthquake, flood, tornado) phones will be lost. Even if emergency personnel are there, trying to help, if your child can’t give them key information . . .!
• What are realistic threats that your child could face on the way to (or from) school? Depending on the age of your child and where you live, going-to-school threats might include:
  • Dangerous traffic
  • A car or bus accident
  • Being approached by a stranger
  • Having to ride with an unfamiliar person (neighbor, etc.)
  • Falling ill or getting a scrape or cut
  • Witnessing a fight or other violence
  • Being harassed or bullied by other children
  • Being threatened by a dog or other animal
  • An unexpected weather event
  • Fill in the blank, here, with a threat that might appear in YOUR neighborhood.
• Is your child aware of these threats? Does he or she know how to respond?You’ll probably want to discuss likely threats one at a time and be ready with some good suggestions for your child on how to handle them. (Reading books or watching TV together may give you a way to start a conversation.)

Caution: If your child walks to school, or you are eager for him to begin, be sure he’s old enough! There’s no set age when that makes sense, but most experts seem to agree that kids aren’t really able to make judgments about moving traffic until they are 9 or 10.

Why, just last year I watched a newly-9-year-old come dashing down the hill from school and tear right across two lanes of traffic without even looking. His mother and I, standing together across the street, were horrified. She shook him, and I asked, “What were you thinking?!” His simple answer shows clearly what he was thinking, and ALL he was thinking: “I saw my mom!”

Selected resources for kids walking to school

Some of our Emergency Plan Guide Advisories may be perfectly good “training courses” for kids. And here are a couple of other resources specifically for children.

Blood is always upsetting, but it needn’t create an emergency. Make sure your kids know some of the basics: https://www.rd.com/health/wellness/teaching-first-aid-kids/

And if your kids walk or bike, check out this article. It has tips for different ages. https://www.healthyfamiliesbc.ca/home/blog/pedestrian-safety-tips-teach-kids

Preparedness questions for kids facing an emergency at school

• Have you confirmed that your child understands the what and why of school safety drills? Have you shown you think these drills are important by practicing some responses together at home?
• Does your child understand that in an emergency kids might have to stay at school for a long time? Or leave the school and go somewhere else? If they know this could happen, it won’t be such an upset.
• How well would your child take emergency direction from someone else? (Teacher, crossing guard, police officer, etc.)
• Would your child be willing to come home with a neighbor if you were not available? (You may have to adjust your teaching about “Don’t ever get into the car of a stranger.”)
• In an emergency, could your child walk home alone from school? Does she know when that would be allowed?
• Does your child know more than one route home?
• Can your child get home by taking the bus?

Emergency supplies for children at school

• Does your child have an emergency kit for school, one that he carries in his backpack all the time?
• Does your child understand that the kit is ONLY for emergencies? (How often do you replace and replenish the kit?)
• In addition to a list of contact numbers, snacks and water, does the school kit contain items like wipes, first aid supplies, a blanket for warmth, a flashlight, and a good whistle? What about an emergency phone?
• Are all the items in the school kit allowed by the school?

Emergencies at home

If preparedness is important to you, then your children will pick up on that and just naturally become more aware and more able to take care of themselves. You may already have trained them in important survival skills. Many EmergencyPlanGuide.org Advisories are written for the whole family, and we assume you share them as appropriate.

But don’t overlook this one important skill that every young child needs to know:

How to call 911.

It seems simple for grown-ups, but isn’t.

First, the kid has to have a phone. A landline is easiest to find and more reliable; a cellphone has to have battery power and the child has to be able to unlock it to get to the keypad.

(On my iPhone 6, for example, I have to press the round Home button to get to the Lock screen. Then, without unlocking, I look for the word “emergency” at the bottom of the page. When I press it, another key pad comes up so I can dial 911 and then press SEND and then I have to wait to be connected.  Lots of steps.)

This article has good hints about dialing 911 and practicing the dialog.

• https://www.verywellfamily.com/how-to-teach-your-child-to-dial-911-2764854

We’ve all heard the stories of toddlers dialing 911 and saving a parent. Those parents weren’t lucky – their kids were trained!

One final note. Older children may be more effective and training younger children than you are, so give them the chance!

Until next time*,

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

*Next time I’ll be addressing some of the best student emergency items I’ve found. Don’t miss that Advisory because the new school year is just around the corner!

And once again, if you didn’t get the questions to ask school administrators, get them now.

 

Joe almost drowned.

It was summer in West Virginia and we were eagerly looking forward to our fourth river rafting trip. We had previously gone rafting in California so this would be a different sort of adventure.

Oh, it turned out to be different all right!

The rafting company was operated by the usual mix of tanned young outdoor types, who got us suited up with some smelly half-damp life vests and loaded us into a clumpy bus for the 20 minute ride to where we would put in.

I seem to recall that the trip included some Class III and just one set of Class IV rapids.  That’s where the raft simply rose up on one side and flipped Joe right out. We all laughed a bit and watched as he was swept ahead of us downriver. We couldn’t catch up right away so he rode the rapids the whole way, feet up in front to keep them from getting snagged, just as he was supposed to.

What we didn’t realize was that his life jacket wasn’t supporting him. Because it was already partly water-logged, and probably too small, every time he got his feet up his face went under. At the bottom of the rapids we finally pulled the raft up beside Joe. He stared up at us blankly, his chin under water, unable to speak or even reach out. Thank goodness the guide saw what was happening, reached over the side, grabbed the front of the vest with both hands and hauled Joe headfirst right over herself into the boat.

For the next 15 minutes Joe lay face down, gasping and coughing and hardly moving while the guide scrambled and got us a place to land. He didn’t say anything at all for the next couple of hours either, as we finished the run. (No more rapids.)

OK, you know he is now recovered. After all, that was a good 20 years ago. But we have never again gone rafting; the memory is just too painful for him.

What’s the point of the story? There are actually 2 of them.

• First, someone could be drowning and you might not even know it.
• Second, even a strong swimmer can be let down by bad equipment.

Here’s more . . .

Drowning doesn’t look like drowning.

I was reminded of our rafting story when I came across a super article last week published in one of my LinkedIn groups. It was written in 2010 by a Coast Guard rescue swimmer named Mario Vittone, published in the Coast Guard magazine, then republished and read 574,000 times since then! Here’s the link: http://mariovittone.com/2010/05/154/

If you don’t have time to read it right now, some highlights:

• Drowning is NOT what we see on T.V. – screaming, wild splashing, arms waving. In fact, drowning is deceptively quiet. That’s why we read so often of children drowning just a few yards from their parents or other adults. In fact, the CDC said 10 percent of parents watch their children drown because they don’t know it’s happening!
• Drowning people cannot call out. They are desperate for just one breath in before going under again.
• Drowning people cannot reach for a float or pole. They instinctively press down with their arms on the surface of the water to try to raise themselves.

Other signs: mouth at water level; head tilted back with mouth open; hair over eyes or face; eyes unable to focus; not using legs.

Joe fit all the symptoms. He was drowning.

Please become number 574,001 on the list of people who have read the WHOLE STORY  and know what to do in the 30 seconds or less you have to save someone.

Bad equipment is like no equipment.

If you’re using rental life vests – known as Personal Flotation Devices or PFDs — check them out thoroughly for fit and floatability. And, of course, the same with any life vests you intend to buy for your family.

Fit: My granddaughters are very young. They love their water wings and are fearless around deep water. However, like all kids they GROW. That means their parents are replacing not only swimsuits at least once a season, but also life vests/water wings and all other water paraphernalia.

It turns out that life vests may be measured by weight or by chest size or both. The vest that Joe was wearing on the river trip was measured by his chest size only – not by his total weight! A mistake!

For children, the most common mistake is a vest that is TOO BIG. It it’s too big, it can slide off or be so uncomfortable the kid takes it off.

For adults, particularly big ones with a belly measurement bigger than your chest measurement, using only chest size may suggest a vest that is TOO SMALL for you.

Take the time to be sure you have the right size!

Function: Different life vests are available for different water sports. For example, you can find vests specifically for learning to swim, for boating, paddle boarding, fishing, kayaking, etc. Then there’s a whole other series (tighter!) designed for more active water sports like waterskiing, wakeboarding or wake surfing. And there are newer waist vests that only inflate when you want to inflate them.

As always, one size or style doesn’t fit all. And people, being people, won’t wear a vest that is too uncomfortable. Shop to pick the best style for your body and your water plans – and always start with a vest that is U.S. Coast Guard approved.

Floatability: Joe’s vest may have been the right size, but it had not been properly taken care of. The nylon was ripped and inside foam was already water-logged, which meant the jacket could not keep his nose and mouth above water.

Now, not all vests are designed to do this even when they are new – so once again, take the time to figure out where you’ll be in the water (close to shore? raging river? out in the middle of Lake Superior?), what you’ll be doing (sailing? snorkeling? jumping off the rocks?) and who is likely to be nearby to help.

Here are some examples of life vests to get you started on your shopping. I picked these because they got good reviews from other buyers and because they offer features I’d want. I’ve given an idea of cost at Amazon — where we are associates — but be sure to click on the image or link to get the accurate price and delivery details. Different colors may cost different prices, and sometimes the best price doesn’t include shipping. Again, these are all-round, everyday vests. The cost of specialty vests for a particular sport can quickly reach $100 or more.

1-Infant/toddler swim vest that won’t accidentally come off.

For an infant or toddler weighing less than 30 pounds, this jacket has features you’d want to look for: a strap that goes between the legs so the vest can’t ride up or slip off; a grab handle at the top so you can easily scoop the baby out of the water. The most popular and cheapest model is blue. I’d choose red because it would be more visible in the water. On the day I searched for this, the cost was right around $20. US Coast Guard-approved, of course.

Classic Vest Infant/Red

2-Vest for child learning to swim.

The Body Glove vest below, with chest vest and arm bands, is designed to help a kid learn to swim. It is NOT a classic life vest like the red one above. Rather, it’s meant to be used where watchers are close by to give an immediate hand in case of trouble. What I think would be important is the fact that the child can’t take this off by him or herself! (Fastens in back.) For a child weighing 30-50 pounds. And naturally there are other “motifs” including mermaid and pirate. Great presents!  Prices range from $20-30.

Body Glove 13226H  Kids 13226M Paddle Pals Motion Swim Life Jacket, Race Car

3-Life jacket for active kids.

The kids I know would not be happy wearing a stiff or bulky life jacket and would surely find a way to get it off. This one they might leave on because it is slim and smooth and has 5 “built in” hinges for flexibility and comfort. (The flex-back jackets seem particularly popular for adults, too.) This fits kids from 50-90 lbs, comes in a different color scheme, too. (There are a number of vendors selling this jacket; only some are eligible for Amazon’s Prime. Check carefully.) Price on this one was $40-$50 the day I shopped.

Full Throttle Youth Hinged Rapid-Dry Flex-Back Vest, Blue/Green, Size Youth

4-Classic life vests for adults.

There are lots of choices for adults. The first one here seems to be a good all-round life vest. It features light-weight flotation foam covered with a smooth nylon shell. You can adjust buckles for comfort, and the vest has open sides for even more comfort. Cost is around $30.

Now, it says the vest is designed for adults weighing 90 pounds or more, but if I were BIG, I’d probably be looking at the second vest below, the red one, also made by Stearns.

Stearns Adult Watersport Classic Series Life Vest, Yellow

Compared to the Watersport Classic, the Classic vest from Stearns comes in larger sizes: “Oversized” and “Universal.” Read the instructions and dimensions to be sure to get the right one. This costs a few dollars less than the Watersport model above (three sets of buckles instead of 4?).

Stearns Adult Classic Series Vest, 3000001412, Red, Universal

In the U.S. there are about 10 deaths a day from drowning, and another 1 of drowning as a result of a boating-related incident.

You and family members will ALWAYS be around water, one way or another. Learn to swim. Learn more about water safety so you don’t become a statistic – and learn how to save someone who’s in trouble so they don’t become a statistic, either. There’s a simple “How to save someone from drowning” lesson here.

Oh, and don’t let our story about river rafting deter you. It is REALLY EXCITING and GREAT FUN! Just be sure your equipment is sound!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

I first saw this “placebo” expression a week ago in an article on LinkedIn. I liked the article (about the failings of FEMA) and liked the expression, in particular. It inspired me to write again about survival kits!

Just as a reminder, a “placebo” is defined as “a harmless procedure prescribed more for a psychological benefit than for any physiological effect.” (Other words that appear in other definitions for placebo are “fake” and “inert.” I love words!)

Do you have a survival kit?

As you know, we recommend kits for everyone, and often more than one per person. One of our most widely read articles offers a handy chart  to help you figure out how many you need.

Could your current kit be considered a “placebo?”

• A harmless survival kit would probably be a kit that contains just a few miscellaneous items and hasn’t been updated or replenished in a long while. Actually, this kit might actually be harmful if you are counting on it to meet your needs in a real emergency.
• What psychological benefit do you get from your survival kit? Do you feel you’ve done your part? Taken all the steps that could logically be expected of you? Does your kit give you actual peace of mind?

How do you answer? Unfortunately, in answering this question, many people who own pre-built survival kits will have to agree that their kits ARE placebos.

What makes a “real” disaster kit?

It’s going to be one you built yourself!

Whether you call them disaster kits, preparedness kits, survival kits, 72-hour kits – doesn’t matter. Putting them together yourself offers important benefits.

• Figuring out where you need kits – at home, in the car, at work, at school, on vacation – starts you thinking about all the potential threats you and different family members face.
• Building a kit for yourself and another one for your 8-year-old makes you realize that one size does not fit all. Why, your identical twin would need different stuff than you need!
• Packing for self-sufficiency for 72 hours – and getting it all into a kit you can carry — makes you realize what is really essential and what is a convenience you can do without.
• Sorting through a first aid kit, a set of hand tools or a box of snacks forces you to evaluate benefits, uses, and quality of each item. You’ll discover you want the best, not the cheapest.

What goes into every “real” disaster survival kit?

I am assuming that since you’re reading this at Emergency Plan Guide, you already have an idea of the basic list.If you need a review, here’s a link to our lists. (The first list is the basic 72-hour list – pick what you can use.)

How should I customize my kits?

Here’s where your disaster kits stop being “placebos” and start being really meaningful to your successful survival!

We’ve pulled five interview questions from our Survival Kit Workbook, so they may be familiar to you. They’re worth answering again.

Question #1. What emergencies could actually arise?

Your answers will depend largely on where you live. For example:

• Sun. Say you live in the moderate climate of Southern California, and have everything organized for that. But, you decide to drive from LA to Las Vegas! Now that takes you into real desert! If your car broke down you would need MORE water, sunscreen, hats, dark glasses, maybe even reflectors (mylar space blankets) to stay alive! Add these items to your car kits as necessary. (Also, don’t start walking . . .)
• Damp. Whether you live in the jungle, or take a trip there, you don’t want to forget to pack a poncho and rain hat, mosquito repellent, snake bite kit, etc. Once again, your pre-built kit may have a poncho, but is VERY unlikely to have any of these other items. Don’t forget a plastic bag to pack INSIDE your kit to keep things dry, and another one to put OVER your kit to keep things dry!
• Cold. Most life-saving items for extreme cold won’t fit in a regular back-pack, so if you live or travel in these conditions, pack a second bag with gloves, boots, warm hat, a cold-weather sleeping bag, hand warmers, fire igniter.
• Coastal area. It’s probably going to be cold even in the best weather, so consider warm clothing. If there’s the possibility of flooding, have an escape tool that will get you out of a seatbelt and out of a car being threatened by deep water.
• Hurricane or tornado zone. You want to know when the storm is arriving! So have an emergency alert radio or mobile phone app for warnings. Have storm or rain gear. Consider tools to help you escape from a damaged building, and a signal device to warn rescuers if you can’t escape.
• Earthquake. Add to your escape tools and signaling devices some extra items to help with digging out – like gloves and a dust mask.

We’ve mentioned natural disasters. Don’t overlook man-made disasters that could require special equipment, too! The list is long: bomb blast, gas line leak, power failure, water supply problem, etc. We’ll take a look at the whole list another day. Back to the interview questions.

Question #2. Where am I likely to be when disaster strikes?

If you are a commuter or driver (soccer mom), you could be in your car. Your car survival kit should include the basics, plus specialty items like decent walking shoes, maps (GPS may be out.) and car safety gear in its own pack (flares, tools, etc.).

As a student away from home, your dorm room or apartment is where you’ll want to store your kit. Be sure it has the basics, plus a copy of the family emergency contact list!

If you are retired, spending most of your time at home in familiar surroundings, your kits can be handy in the closet or near the door. Don’t forget to include medicines enough for 3 days. (If you had to leave home, it might take that long to get hold of replacements.) How about glasses, hearing aids and batteries?

Do you have pets? They’ll need kits, too! Start with a container, and put into it leash, food, dish, pee pee mats and/or dog poop bags. Don’t forget medical needs and a photo ID of you and the pet together. (Don’t want a lost pet sent off with the wrong person.)

Question #3. How capable and strong am I?

There are some pre-built kits on the market that are very complete – and they weigh so much you probably can’t lift them! So, can the person the kit is meant for actually carry it? Unzip and unpack it? It makes no sense to have a full kit for someone who can only manage a half dozen items in an old purse.

Your general level of competence will also have something to do with whether you pack these items: cash, keys, copies of important documents (on flash drive, I hope).

Question #4. What skills do I have and what tools could I realistically use?

One of the most popular items for a kit is a multi-purpose tool, with knife blade, scissors, can opener, pliers, etc. However, not everyone can use one of these. Some people wouldn’t even be able to open it! Maybe a simple knife or pair of scissors would be better suited. Don’t include items – tools, medicines, rope, matches, weapons, etc. – that waste space or worse, become dangerous in the wrong hands.

Question #5. Where will I store my kit?

We already talked about this. The idea is to have the kit handy, so you can grab it and go.

It doesn’t make sense, by the way, to broadcast that this is a survival kit. Avoid bright red cases with the words “Emergency Supplies” on them! We prefer non-descript or even used backpacks or duffle bags.

Whew. We jumped right into this, didn’t we! But I am confident that if you answered all the interview questions, and made appropriate adjustments to your survival kits, not one of them could be considered a placebo.

Here at Emergency Plan Guide, our kits are “the real thing!”

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S. What have you included in your survival kits that wasn’t mentioned here? Let us know so we can add it!

 

A blog post on emergency preparedness every single week?

Six years ago when I started writing the Advisories for Emergency Plan Guide, my daughter assured me that I’d have no problem coming up with an article every week.

“After all, Mom, you’ve always been indiscriminately curious.”

I’m not sure that was a compliment. But it IS the truth, so every week I am inspired to learn more and write about some aspect of preparedness. Sometimes they are pretty unconventional – like volcano insurance, or museum putty, or the difference between threat and risk.

But there’s one topic I don’t write about: guns.

You will have noticed that Joe and I pretty much stay away from writing about guns.

We take this editorial posture for several reasons:

• Our focus at Emergency Plan Guide is mostly on people working together to improve their chances in a disaster. When people use a gun in a civilian setting, it’s not usually an indication of “togetherness.”
• Most of our recommendations are for things that ordinary people can see the value of and can be put to use with minimal training. Guns take a whole lot of practice and STILL may not turn out to be effective. On the contrary . . .
• Our readers come from around the country and increasingly from around the world. (Recent subscribers have come from The Philippines and Spain.) Rules and regulations regarding firearms vary tremendously; I don’t want to get any reader into trouble because I misled him or her or overlooked something critical.

All that said, I know that . . .

Many of our readers ARE interested in guns — just like I am!

Somewhere along the line I’ve written about my teenage days hunting quail and pheasant with my Dad. (I carried a double barrel 20 gauge – and was quick off the mark!)

I could certainly write about my eye-opening experience at the gun range in Las Vegas a couple of years ago – the first time I had fired a handgun.

And I could include info from other prepper blogs I subscribe to, and the endless stream of offers I get for free Glocks, free laser sights, free ankle holsters, plastic guns you can make yourself, bulk ammo, cheap ammo, bulk cheap ammo – you name it!

What prompted me to write today’s Advisory about guns?

With all that activity and interest, sometimes it doesn’t feel right just ignoring the subject. So when I came across the resource I’m recommending today, I was delighted!

One of the survivor blogs I get and read regularly comes from Aaron at In The Rabbit Hole. His focus in on “urban survival” and he offers blogs and videos to his fans: “How to Stop Worrying And Actually Be More Prepared.”

Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?!

Anyway, over the past couple of weeks he’s been running a training series made up of short videos. I started watching because they are short, and discovered a certain engaging quirkiness and a perspective I appreciate.

The third episode inspired me to action.

When I got to the third episode of the current training series, I knew I wanted you to see it too!

Whether you are a gun lover, a gun hater or scared of the whole issue, you need to see this short video, hear the story, and consider the advice. I haven’t seen anything as good for a long time.

I contacted Aaron and he kindly sent a link where you can sign up for the free series. It will be delivered one day at a time.  I suppose you can wait for the 3^rd day to get the episode on guns, but you’ll want to watch day 1 and day 2, too. Same quirkiness and same refreshing perspective!

 https://www.intherabbithole.com/7-day-course/

Let me know what you think!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

I just got episode 6 today, and am going  to go watch it now.

By now you know that at Emergency Plan Guide, when it comes to survival kits, there’s no such thing as “one size fits all.”

By now you know that having “the one perfect kit” doesn’t work, either!

No matter how well stocked your survival kit, if it is at home when the emergency strikes, and you are 43 miles away in the car, that kit will do you absolutely no good!

Different Survival Kits for Different Situations

The chart shows the four different sets of supplies that we think everyone needs:

1-A Go-Bag or Survival Kit (also known as a 3-day or 72-hour kit)

This is the kit you grab as you head out the door in an emergency. This kit needs to provide basics for the top  nine categories: water; food (stuff you like and can eat cold); shelter/warmth (clothing, blanket, sleeping bag, fire igniter); health/safety (first aid kit, medicines, sanitation supplies); communications (radio, whistle); light (flashlight, headlamp, lantern); clothing (shoes, gloves); cash (for vending machines and/or for buying supplies); personal items (toothbrush, prescription drugs, extra eyeglasses, paper and pen/pencil, and if it suits, a weapon for self-defense).

By and large, an off-the-shelf kit will be missing more than one of these main categories, so while it may serve as a start, you really can’t count on it.

2-A kit for the car

We all travel. And any of us could be trapped overnight in a car for something as mundane as road construction, a fallen tree – or a full-blown blizzard or hurricane. Your car kit will keep you comfortable and safe until you can find your way around the damage.

Your car kit contains the same basics as listed above for the Go-Bag, but it also may have some transportation-related items including tools for car repairs, jumper cables, a work light, maps, and flares. In snow country? Consider a folding shovel and non-slip mats. (You can see that you may actually have to pack two kits – one with personal stuff, and the other with car stuff. Tools and jumper cables are heavy and get dirty.)

One final note about your car. Remember it has a battery that can be used to charge your phone and power other items (like flood lights) as long as you have the right connections.

3-A kit for at work

Once again, this kit starts with the basics. Then, depending on where you work – how far it is from your home, what sort of building it is, what actually happens at the workplace – you may need some specialty items.

If you have to set out on foot to get home, you’ll need, above all, comfortable shoes. (Break in new shoes/boots for your office or car kit by wearing them on the treadmill at the gym!)

Your work kit might contain any of these specialty items: the comfortable shoes mentioned above, personal safety equipment including gloves, dust mask, and safety glasses; tool for shutting off equipment; list of business and family contacts; a good whistle.

If people have already left the workplace, and aren’t planning to come back, you might check out your colleagues’ desk drawers for extra snacks, band aids, etc. Most office workers have that “personal drawer” that could be a small treasure trove in a big emergency!

4-Shelter-in-place

Here in California, we have been asked by our local fire department to be prepared to shelter in place for 10 days to 2 weeks after “the big one” hits. If you live in a different area, with different threats, you may want to pull together supplies that will keep you going for months, not weeks.

Shelter-in-place supplies start with the basics, just as in the smaller kits. But you’ll need more of everything. Think of it as an extended camping trip, and build a plan . . .

Plan for buying and rotating canned food, stocking up on toilet paper and other sanitary supplies and buying and storing extra batteries. You may need more substantial shelter – like a big tent, or plastic to seal windows, with the ever popular duct tape, of course. A variety of more substantial tools. Like the concept of dried meals? Be sure you have something to heat water in so you can reconstitute it – for example, a camp stove and pot.

For each kit, your complete list will be longer that what we’ve just gone over.

But today, we’re not seeking perfection. We’re getting a handle on general readiness!

Rate yourself on the state of your own survival supplies.

So as you have read these reviews of the different emergency supply kits, how would you rate yourself? One easy way is to estimate the percentage completed for each of the following statements.

• I have assembled supplies for all four needs — Go Bag, Car, Work, Shelter-in-Place. My percentage completed _____
• I have considered all nine major categories — water, food, shelter/warmth, health/safety, communications, lighting, clothing, cash, personal items. My percentage completed _____
• I have added specialty items that I personally need or want for each kit. My percentage completed ___

If your score isn’t where you’d like it to be, consider the following.

Over the years we’ve asked many, many people why they haven’t put together their preparedness supplies. Here are the most popular “reasons:”

• I don’t know how to get started.
• It will take too long.
• People will think I am strange or weird.
• Why bother?  If it is the end of the world, it will not matter.
• Nothing has happened so far, so why should I start to worry now?

Any of these sound familiar? I’m sure you’ve thought or heard them all at one time or another!

However, here at Emergency Plan Guide we figure these are all pretty weak reasons. In fact, we call them “excuses!”

Why so weak?

Because we’ve seen so many people start with one or two items and just keep working at it over time until they have built up a perfectly respectable stash!

When they do, they feel pleased and satisfied and a lot more confident that they’ll be able to handle that emergency, whenever it DOES come!

And that’s what we’re all working toward!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S. Here are more lists of emergency supplies that you may be interested in:

• Top Ten Emergency Starter Items – For people who don’t have a lot of money to start with but are determined to take that first step.
• Car Kit for the Commuter – We wrote this for Joe’s daughter, who has the stereotypical L.A. commute that takes her 50 miles from home every day.
• Top Ten Survival Items — Detailed info on pretty much all 9 of the basic categories.

Identity theft – the fastest-growing crime in America.

Here at Emergency Plan Guide we examine a wide variety of threats to our safety and security, and certainly, identify theft belongs on our list.

Over 16 million people became victims of identity theft in 2017 – nineteen every minute!

So, on World Password Day, it’s worth taking another look at some common frauds from both sides – the scams that threaten us, and the actions we can take to avoid falling prey to them.

A scam is designed to trick or cheat you directly to get your money. When identity theft is involved, the criminal takes your identity to sell the information to a third party or to steal money in other ways, often after a delay.

Who gets scammed?

Most of us know that older people are targeted more than other groups. Most of us don’t know, however, that it’s Millennials who have the highest ratio of actually becoming victims!

The June 2018 issue of Consumer Reports takes a look at victims not by demographics (age, income, etc.) but by personality type. Here are some excerpts from their article that I found valuable.

• Eager for bargains – These victims are people who willingly open and read emails and snail mail that advertises investments, contests and drawings, special time-limited discounts, even a message or an envelope stamped “You’re a winner!”
  Does this sound familiar? The danger is, every time you respond in any way, you will be identified as potential prey and you are likely to get follow-up letters, phone calls, etc.
• Susceptible to persuasion – You may get a fund-raising phone call from a veteran’s group or a fire fighter or other special group with an emotional appeal. They ask for and get your personal information along with your donation. Phishing emails work this way, too. You are “persuaded” by well-designed emails that the message requesting your response is coming from a legitimate source – your bank or credit card company or even someone in your own company. A study from the internet security firm F-Secure reports that more than one-third of all security incidents start with phishing emails or attachments sent to company employees.
  Again, their goal is identity theft — stealing your personal information which may include passwords and/or login sequences.
• Make an immediate decision out of fear or greed – Are you a person who can make a spontaneous purchase without doing any real research about where the offer is coming from, without reading “the fine print” of the contract, etc.?
  I’ve never gotten the famous “grandmother” call (“Grandma, I’ve been in an accident and I need your help!”) — UPDATE as of 10.2019. Yes, I have received this call! Moreover, TODAY I have received 2 separate phone calls from the “Criminal Division of the IRS!” (Slightly different messages, one female voice and one male voice.) This IRS scam has been around since 2016 but apparently is still going strong.
  And I have also been shocked a couple of times by a wildly blinking pop-up on my computer with a message that reads something like — WARNING YOUR COMPUTER IS COMPROMISED CALL IMMEDIATELY FOR TECHNICAL HELP!
  I get the same kind of message by phone, too. “This is the technical department. We can see that your computer is having problems.”

These scams are designed to frighten you into giving out your personal details and your credit card account information.

Ransomware is a variation on the theme of fear. It is malicious software that takes control of your computer, encrypting your files and blocking your access to access them. The thieves tell you to pay a “ransom” in order for the lock on your files to be removed. You can be infected by clicking on links in emails or social media messages or by clicking on links in compromised ads (apparently often those ads that stream video).

With all this danger out there, what can we do?

Recommendations for basic protection against identity theft.

I hope some of this is familiar to you!

On the phone – Don’t answer calls from numbers you don’t recognize. A legitimate caller will leave a message so you can do your research before you call back. If you are called by the IRS or by a computer “technician” or someone announcing you have just won some sort of prize, just hang up.

On the cellphone .–.Same as above, but in addition, if you click on a link in the text of an email or text, the scammer may be able to install malware that can collect personal info from your phone!

On the computer —

(1) Even if a message comes from what looks like a friend, stop before you click on a link or download a document. Check the “from” portion of the email. You may see the name of a friend or colleague, but a closer look at the domain will reveal a completely unknown or a foreign mail service.

(2) Disable pop-up advertising so you don’t accidentally click on a dangerous link.

(3) Keep your operating system and browser software updated.

(4) Back up your files so if you are truly the victim of malware or ransomware attack you will be able to restore your files.

(5) Install good antivirus software and keep it updated.

Which brings us back to celebrating World Password Day!

Take the time TODAY to examine your passwords.

Once again, I  hope this is review for you!  But if not, you can start making some changes today to protect yourself from identity theft.

Use different passwords!

Make sure you aren’t using the same password for more than one account. 60% of people make this foolish mistake – if hackers get ONE of your accounts, they will then have access to others! By the way, here’s a list of the most common passwords, from Keeper Security:

1. 123456	10. 987654321	19. 555555
2. 123456789	11. qwertyuiop	20. 3rjs1la7qe
3. qwerty	12. mynoob	21. google
4. 12345678	13. 123321	22. 1q2w3e4r5t
5. 111111	14. 666666	23. 123qwe
6. 1234567890	15. 18atcskd2w	24. zxcvbnm
7. 1234567	16. 7777777	25. 1q2w3e
8. password	17. 1q2w3e4r
9. 123123	18. 654321

Note #1. If you’re creating websites, don’t use “admin” as your password!

Note #2. If you are happily installing smart home management devices – voice-activated or smart-phone activated cameras and temperature controls, security systems, etc. – think through the passwords you’re using there, too.

Change out OLD passwords.

Change one today! Many older passwords are probably too simple and easy to guess. Many experts recommend a password made up of at least 16 digits including capital and lower case letters, numbers and symbols.

Read below for a resource to help you come up with longer, stronger passwords.

Add a second layer of security.

Add “multi-factor authentication” to your favorite email, bank or social media apps and websites. This adds a second step to your login – it may be a fingerprint scan on your phone, or a request for a PIN that is sent to your phone for one-time access to your computer account.

Make a plan for tracking your passwords.

One way to keep track of your passwords is simply to write them down. It may be slow, and you’ll have to look them up regularly, but it’s a tried and true and reliable method (as long as you protect your list from fire, flood and theft!)

I own the book shown. I selected it because its pages were large enough actually write in, unlike many of the “notebooks” you’ll find advertised for this same purpose. And it doesn’t advertise “SECRET PASSWORDS” on the cover! Click on the image and you can go to Amazon to check prices and other options.

Find out more about digital security.

There are hundreds of articles and books available on the topic of passwords and identify theft. You can find instructions for creating strong passwords that are easy for you to remember but difficult for anyone else to figure out.

A side note. You may want a way for someone else to get into your accounts if you have been incapacitated. Think about that . . .!

Use a password manager.

Many password products are available, at costs that range from free (simple versions for just one device) to several dollars a month (multiple devices, syncing, etc.) These managers store all your passwords safely, automatically “remember” them so that sign-ins are automated, and some even have a “legacy feature” so someone can inherit your passwords. In any case, you only have to remember the one, master password.

A recent article by PC Magazine compares the top dozen paid password manager products and gives its recommendation for free products, too. https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2407168,00.asp

Amazon offers a free download for two of the free popular password managers mentioned in the PC Magazine article: Roboform and LastPass, images shown below. Click and you will go directly there. (Review carefully to be sure you’re getting all you need. You may find that a premium version will suit you better.)

Get and use the best anti-virus programs.

Over the years we have used a number of anti-virus products. For the last 7 years or so we have been using Avast – first the free, and now the Premier version. The company has provided good service in a couple of what I will call “sticky” situations and we feel more secure having them on our side.

I checked costs today and you can save quite a lot of money by buying through Amazon. (We are Associates.) Click on the image for current prices. Be sure to understand exactly which version of the product you are getting, for how many computers and for how long. It’s easy to mis-read the advertising (even though it’s perfectly clearly laid out!).

Disclaimer – This Advisory is not necessarily all you need to improve your security and avoid identity theft. But, it’s a start. If any of the stories or recommendations sound like they might fit you or family members, take the time to find out more about how to protect yourself.

Maintaining password security is an ongoing project. Might as well establish good habits NOW — so you can celebrate next year!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

If you’ve been following our Advisories for a while, you know that we base a lot of our preparedness activities on CERT principles.

We took the CERT training in 2001 — more than 15 years ago! We continue to support the local team. The image shows me at a CERT Appreciation  Breakfast last weekend. I’m there with the Police Explorer honor guard.  (Had to get up close to those outstanding young people!)

What is CERT?

CERT, of course, stands for Community Emergency Response Team. It’s a training program that fits under the umbrella of Citizen Corps. The Corps is a Federal Program started after 9/11 to help citizens get involved in protecting their neighborhoods.

(I looked it up: Citizen Corps manages six programs — CERT, Fire Corps, National Neighborhood Watch, Medical Reserve Corps, Volunteers in Police Service and the Corporation for National and Community Service. All these fall under the umbrella of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA.)

According to the CERT website, its purpose is to “educate people about disaster preparedness and train them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, and disaster medical operations.” To see the whole detailed description, plus a few photos, head to the official site: https://www.ready.gov/community-emergency-response-team

The great thing about CERT

The training is standardized across the country.It is usually offered FREE OF CHARGE by coordinators from your city’s administration, local fire department and/or local police department.

If you want to understand what would happen to your community in an emergency, I urge you to get this training! 

• It’s fun, sometimes challenging, always well done. (Trainers are certified.)
• You’ll make new friends of people you never would come into contact with otherwise.
• You’ll review some first aid basics you learned way back when. Plus you will get a lot of new info like how to use radio technology and be ready for an active shooter. Follow-up programs let you practice using equipment like flares and fire extinguishers.
• Your understanding of the role of First Responders will change.
• And you’ll come out with some basic emergency preparedness gear: backpack or duffel bag, gloves, flashlight, face mask, etc.

And after the training, CERT members can be activated to serve.

We’ve promoted our city’s program, and participated every year in one or the other of the ongoing trainings they put on. Along the way we’ve been called up by the police department to help at events like these:

• Volunteers were requested at 11:30 pm to help with searches for lost citizens. (Both times, the lost person was older and suffered from some sort of dementia. Both times, the lost person was found, but only after he had spent the night outdoors, who knows where . . .)
• We provided support to various city-sponsored community events, like fairs and races – staffing booths, directing traffic, etc.
• CERT members did a door-to-door distribution of flyers to promote an anti-crime initiative. We also helped residents prepare for a possible weather event.

Every time we show up, we see some of our classmates!

In this past year of significant disasters, other CERT members around the country have performed a variety of services. Some staffed HAM radio stations, others worked in emergency shelters. CERT members acted as wildfire spotters. Others supported community programs like installing smoke alarms, and helping manage pets during evacuations.

Where CERT is weak

All CERT trained individuals come out a lot more confident and a lot more knowledgeable.  They are ready to provide support to First Responders in emergencies.

Problem #1: After the training people go right back into a neighborhood where most of the others are still unaware and unprepared!

That training could be spread to more people in the neighborhood – but in most cases it is simply squandered.

Now that our city has nearly 2,000 graduates, they are trying to build a stronger community network of CERT grads. But they have run into a major problem that has plagued the effort for years.

Problem #2: The city, due to “privacy concerns,” is unable to share names and addresses of the people who have received the training!

This puts the burden of organizing a local neighborhood group on a single person or family.

What our neighborhood has done with CERT

We have been able to overcome this in our own local neighborhood, as you know. For years we promoted the class, month after month. Eventually we built up a core group of around 30 CERT graduates who were then able to attract even more neighbors – with or without formal CERT training — to join in our local neighborhood emergency response group.

How we built that neighborhood team is, of course, the story I’ve told in my Disaster Survival Series, just published. Our group’s success was based on CERT, our Homeowner Association’s support, and a lot of determined and committed people. I’ve documented all the steps we’ve taken in building the group.

Looking to promote more resilience in your OWN neighborhood?

There are probably a half-dozen or even more good training programs that would benefit your neighbors and could be molded into a neighborhood or group training program.

CERT has worked for us because it is free, nationally certified and recognized by property owners and the media. It is non-profit and is supported by our local First Responder community.

I recommend you find out more about CERT availability from your city’s Office of Emergency Management (maybe called the Department of Emergency Management, or Emergency Management Office). It’s possible only a couple of classes will be held each year, but in some communities there will be more. Find out! (If you can’t get training in your town, you can get some of the basics online. )

This is one tax-payer supported program that really pays off.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

We have taken the CERT ball and run with it because, unlike some of the alarmist survivalist factions, we don’t want to be totally on our own in a disaster! We want friendly and prepared neighbors all around!

 

How does your Property Management Company Stack Up When it Comes to Emergency Preparedness?

Do you live in an apartment complex, a mobilehome park, a condo complex, a retirement community, a gated community, or any kind of community with a Home Owners’ Association?

Does your community have a property manager hired by the owner or by the Association?

Or maybe you yourself are a property owner, doing your own managing?

No matter the exact ownership circumstances, it is important to

Include a property manager in your emergency preparedness planning!

Two important outcomes are possible.

1. You could uncover that you have been making unfounded assumptions about the role and capabilities of the manager to protect residents in an emergency.
2. Your investigation and follow-up discussions may allow you to improve emergency response for all your neighbors1

Emergency Plan Guide is not a professional property management company, of course, but we have owned rental property, lived under property managers and served on various boards and homeowners’ associations making decisions about most of the topics that follow.

And of course we do not know where you live as you are reading this, so we can’t know the regulations that apply in your state and city.

Still, we understand basic management responsibilities and can pose general questions that EVERY one should be able to answer!

Disaster survival questions for tenants, owners and managers.

Personal experiences give us a place to get started with questions. If you have ever lived in a property with a property manager, consider these:

1. When you moved in, did you get a list of emergency procedures for the building or for the community? For example, did you receive a map showing the buildings and/or homes (including their addresses), location of fire extinguishers or hydrants, list of local emergency contacts including who to call after-hours, information about evacuation routes, etc.?
2. Is there any specific info on disaster planning for people with disabilities? Older people with mobility challenges? How about planning for pets?
3. Has that emergency information been updated regularly?
4. Do you know where to find the most recent copy of emergency procedures?
5. Has the community ever practiced an emergency drill or evacuation?
6. Do you know the location of all the exits from the property? If they are habitually kept locked, do you know who would open them in an emergency?
7. If you are on the second floor, or higher, do you have an emergency ladder? Are you allowed to practice evacuating?

Multi-story buildings have particular emergency preparedness issues. If you haven’t lived in a multi-story building, you surely know someone who does. Be sure they are asking questions like these . . .

1. Have you been told/shown where all the stairs are? Do stairs lead up to the roof as well as down to the street? Are doors in stairwells locked?
2. Do you know where fire alarms and fire extinguishers are located in or outside the building? (We assume you have a fire extinguisher inside your own dwelling.)
3. Do you know what happens when the fire alarm goes off? For example, what does the elevator do? What happens to interior doors, if anything?
4. Do you know what happens when power goes out? Again, what happens to elevators, doors, gates?
5. Are all dwelling units on all floors protected with a sprinkler system?

The 22017 Grenfell Tower fire in London – in which 71 people died — raised the question of sprinklers. And more recently a fire in the Trump Tower in New York – in which 1 person died and 6 firefighters were injured – revealed that its upper floors (exclusive residential apartments) also did not have sprinklers. Moreover, the apartment where the one victim died did not have a working smoke alarm.

Every property manager should be able to answer these questions:

1. Who makes the decision that there is an emergency? If the manager isn’t available, who makes it?
2. How are residents alerted or notified about a weather emergency? Can they be notified if power is out?
3. After a disaster, does the management company maintain a website where updates could be obtained?
4. What procedures are in place for ongoing communications if the emergency lasts for hours or days? (For ex., a widespread health emergency requiring closure of the pool and clubhouse.)
5. How would the community fare in a longer-term emergency? What about rent payments, trash collection, security? What about management personnel?
6. Does the management company store any kind of emergency supplies? How are they rotated, inspected, etc.? Who has a key? How would supplies be distributed?

How to use these emergency preparedness questions.

• As someone concerned with emergency planning, you can use this list to be sure you haven’t made any assumptions about your community that turn out to be incorrect. In some cases you may be able to come up with alternatives to what look like problems.
• As a member of a community preparedness group, you can use this list to suggest improvements to your neighbors and to your management company.
• As a member of an HOA Board, you can use this list to help your group identify and hire the best possible management company for your property!

Again, every community is different, so there is no one-size-fits-all management standard. But property managers play an important role in emergency planning and, in particular, in responding to an emergency. Whether they are prepared or not, people will turn to them for answers.

You may be able to reassure residents and management alike by making sure common questions get answered well before a disaster happens.

Follow through with your own property manager, and share with others who live in communities with managers. This is essential info.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

Addendum: It seems that most property management contracts do NOT include requirements for protecting residents. (I conducted an informal survey online with a group of professionals and received a couple dozen responses.) Nevertheless, as more attention is paid to disaster prevention and emergency response planning, the concept of a “standard of care” needs to be considered. In this case, if most professional management companies in your area are incorporating emergency preparedness education and practices into their services – or at least adding in a budget line item for it — the few that ignore it will stand out as not being up to standard. This could have a legal impact. Certainly, it should have an impact on the company’s ability to win business.

In a major disaster, the chances are your telephones won’t work.

• Handheld home phones (“rove-a-phones”) depend on electricity for power. If you experience an outage, your house phones may not work at all.
• Old style land lines messages may go through when a home phone doesn’t work. But they have to go through a central office before getting distributed to another connection.  An earthquake or storm may cause lines to break or that local office to be damaged.
• Cell phones “broadcast” your voice or data to antennas that are connected through a network of computers and then are re-broadcast from other antennas to the recipient’s location.  Even if you have a strong battery, if the antennas are damaged or the computers inoperative, cell phones won’t work.

The problem for everyone, no matter WHAT kind of phone . . .

System overload!

With everybody on a network trying to get through at once, the circuits (which typically can only handle about 10% of the total subscribers at best) will be overloaded and calls won’t go through . . . especially local point-to-point calls within the affected area. Remember these examples where service was shut down because of overload — people calling to check on each other, to share video, etc.?

• Boston Marathon
• Superbowl
• Earthquake in SF Bay area
• Mass shooting in Las Vegas

Naturally, you might ask, “Why not add more capacity to the system?”

Building more towers and more switching stations could make it possible for more traffic to be carried in an emergency. But since emergencies by their very nature are unpredictable, it would be impossible to know WHERE to put all this extra equipment. Even if it were installed, the overcapacity would then sit idle probably 364 days a year until it were needed.

So, massive infrastructure upgrades are not likely to happen!

What are our options?

If you personally are caught in an emergency  at home, check to see if you have (1) cell service, (2) home service and/or (3) hardwired landline.

If you do have cell service, keep in mind . . .

• Calling locally may be difficult or impossible. Call outside your local area — for example, making a long-distance call to your out-of-town contact may work.
• Use email and text — they require less bandwidth than voice and may get through.
• Register and use the Red Cross Safe and Well app so family members can check there, instead of trying to reach you by phone.

Note: If you don’t have your cell phone, or it’s damaged, or the batteries have died, you will need to have memorized a few important phone numbers or be able to put your hands on a written list!

Now, if you are on the planning committee for a big event, you’ll want to find out more about temporary solutions like these:

• A wireless network —  can be installed in a matter of hours, saving event organizers time and money on the overall cost of the project.
• Mobile cell towers on wheels or light trucks, along with specialty antennas — boost network traffic capacity.
• Low altitude airborne platforms hovering over an emergency (imagine a tethered helium balloon or a drone) — easily extend a communications network over a difficult terrain or dangerous location.

As for First Responders, in 2017 AT&T won a 25-year contract from FirstNet to build and run a broadband network that will cater to first responders including police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical services in all 50 states. More about this as we learn it!

Another option for keeping in touch locally — walkie-talkies.

When all phones are down, maybe for an extended period, you’ll want to consider walkie-talkies, or hand-held radios.

They are an inexpensive and practical way to communicate within a neighborhood between family members, emergency team members, etc. While their range is limited to a mile or less for most inexpensive units, that is usually sufficient for communicating within a neighborhood.  After all, since the frequencies are public, you really don’t want to be receiving other communities’ conversations in the middle of your activities.

Why are walkie-talkies able to communicate when telephones can’t? Simple. These two-way radios are self-contained, providing their own power from rechargeable or replaceable batteries. They broadcast directly, point-to-point on the Family Radio Service (FRS) and General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) assigned frequencies without the need to go through any central office or computer.

Action Item:  What are the chances your neighborhood could be hit by a storm? What about your workplace? Could you could be trapped? Consider keeping a walkie-talkie in each room of the house or office so that you could communicate with rescuers on a pre-arranged radio frequency.

There’s much more here at Emergency Plan Guide on the subject of communication and the discipline of emergency response team volunteers in using the different radio frequencies. Check out the links below, and consider picking up a pair of walkie-talkies for practice. You can get basic ones starting at around $20 a pair. We use ours in emergencies, but also when we’re camping, at conventions or the fair, and certainly at big entertainment events. They are an alternative to your cellphone that you may never have really thought about.

Joe
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

If radio communications are of interest to you, you may want to review these Advisories:

• Hand-held radio communications
• Reviews of walkie-talkies

We update our reviews regularly. Sign up below to get these announcements via our Advisories.