Hundreds of thousands in the dark – again?

I just heard the local newscaster say, “ . . . as many as 260,000 will be without power.”

That should give you the clue as to where we are. There are 7 wildfires burning here in California, with all but one at 0% containment. And that one is only 5% contained.

I hope by the time you read this, those numbers will have changed.

Last week we talked about severe winter weather and the dangers the cold it can bring. This week, it’s heat.

Whether from heat or snow, winds or flooding, overburdened electric cables, transformers, and other electrical equipment can fail.

This year will  explode the power outage statistics, given the hurricanes in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands that left hundreds of thousands without power.

Will you be next?

Up until this year, the average American could have expected at least one power outage a year, and it would have averaged 200 minutes. Unfortunately, given the way things are going, you may need to expect a whole lot more minutes of outage. And maybe even days.

The good news?  We assume you have a sensible approach to outages and are preparing for them.

Ready.gov offers these basic suggestions for coping with power outage.

• Have flashlight, batteries, cash and first aid supplies. No candles.
• Have alternative charging methods for your phone or any device that requires power.
• Know how to open your garage door when power is off.
• Keep your car full of gas. Gas pumps require electricity.

This should all sound familiar, but . . .

Let’s take a closer look at a couple of these.

It goes without saying that you should have flashlights in every kit and in every room!

Emergency temporary lighting options

About 6 weeks ago, just after Hurricane Harvey hit, we revisited the topic of emergency lights and lanterns. If you haven’t seen that Advisory, or can’t remember the details, it goes into some detail about different types of flashlights, batteries, what a difference lumens make, the value of adjustable focus, etc.

You may want to take another quick look at that lantern Advisory and see if you need to replenish or add to your emergency supplies. While you’re at it, add Inflatable solar powered lamps to the options.

Shown at left, these are affordable at about $10 each, and are water and snow resistant, small, lightweight, perfect for emergencies or for any evening activity or party. Click on the image to get current pricing.

Alternative charging methods for devices

The technology that allows you to charge or recharge your various devices just keeps changing!

Not long ago we spent time examining the so-called “power banks” that store enough power to recharge your devices several times.  They range from what are termed “lipstick size” (1-2 charges) to considerably larger. Here’s that original Advisory that covers batteries and chargers.

As you might expect, the more charging capacity you ask for, the larger the banks are and the more they cost. The one shown here, for example, is about the size of a wallet, has two USB ports for charging devices, and actually will charge your phone as many as 6 times. Click on the image for full details on this power bank.

Charging methods for bigger stuff

If you’ve ever been faced with a car that won’t start, you’ll be interested in this!

I seem to attract cars whose batteries just can’t keep up . . . so we have added one more piece of emergency equipment to what’s stored in the trunk.

12 V Car Jump Starter

After years of backing a second car up to mine, fighting with jumper cables, etc., I was happy to get a portable battery charger. You can see it in the photo, labeled “old.”

This week, though, I was even more thrilled to get my hands on the portable power pack labeled “new.”

It pops right into the trunk (or into the glove compartment) since it’s not much bigger than Joe’s cell phone (shown) and can provide enough power for 20 jump starts!

The charger also powers phones, tablets, etc, and has a built-in S.O.S. LED light.

Lots of safety features, too, to prevent over-charging, over-heating, etc. And a row of blue lights indicates just how much charge you have left.

Below is a similar model, same size, same price, better picture!, from Amazon. It comes complete with clamps, plugs and cords plus carrying case.

The model shown here has 600 Amps, suitable for jump starting cars or smaller diesel engines, ATVs, boats, etc.  If you have bigger engines, look for a more robust device. The more energy you need, the bigger the item and, of course, the more expensive.

Still, for somewhere around $60 you can get a LOT OF SECURITY for yourself or family members! (Small enough to stuff in a stocking, too.) Click on the image for exact pricing.

Energy to keep equipment running

We’ve heard over and over again the challenges Puerto Rico has in keeping hospitals running for weeks using generators designed for short-term usage. Their maintenance people must be very skilled!

For most of us, a generator is purely a back-up device to carry us through a temporary power outage.

Precisely because it’s not used regularly, a generator requires extra attention as to placement and usage. Some quick safety reminders:

• Generators can produce carbon monoxide, so they need to be placed OUTSIDE where there is plenty of air circulation.
• Keep your generator dry.
• Store the right fuel for your generator in a safe, secure place where it doesn’t become a fire hazard.
• A portable generator typically can run one or two pieces of equipment. Plug them directly into the generator. Do NOT plug the generator into the home electrical system!
• Size your generator to meet high start-up electrical requirements as well as requirements for running the equipment. (“Starting watts” vs “running watts”)

I’ve written before about the generators we bought for our neighborhood emergency response group. You may find those stories informational. Here’s a link to one of them.

A generator like the one shown below is a typical, mid-range household emergency generator. This type of generator is rated at between 500 and 15,000 watts. This one (at 7,500 watts, about $1,000) is shown with wheels, but be aware that it is not exactly portable because it weighs over 200 pounds!

This generator has an electric starter and runs on gas or propane. In the yellow triangular space on the front you can see that it has several outlets, both 120 and 240 volts, all protected from power surges. The manufacturer also offers a number of guarantees.

Click the image for full details and to use this model as a start for shopping. (You’ll see that a lot of people buy a cover and extra heavy-duty cords along with the generator itself.)

Whole-house standby generators

Did you notice the sentence hidden above that says a is designed to power “just one or two pieces of equipment.”?

If that’s not enough for you (!), you’ll want to consider a standby generator. This is a different level of equipment, permanently installed and sized to turn on automatically when the power fails. Standby generators generate anywhere from 5,000 to 150,000 watts. To find the right sized generator, you’ll need to examine exactly what you want to power in the way of essential equipment (A/C, heater, sump pump, etc.), appliances (stove, microwave, dishwasher, dryer, etc.) and extras (computers, hot tub, security, etc.).

Prices on standby generators start as low as $2,000, but realistic prices probably start around $5,000.

Get help from a qualified electrician to establish the size you need and to be sure it gets properly installed.

Whew. That’s a fair amount of info about emergency lighting and power. But I can assure you, when an extended outage hits, you’ll be pleased to have some back-up capability.

You can be SURE that after the power outage hits, none of these items will be available in stores — either they’ll be sold out, or the stores too will be closed because they have no power!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

How To Protect Your Home–And Your Family–In An Emergency

Intro to this week’s Advisory – From time to time, readers contact me to offer a suggestion, a correction or, happily, a Guest Advisory! This week is an example. It was written by Oliver Lambert, co-creator of DisasterSafety. As its name suggests, his site focuses on safety resources including but not limited to hurricane, flooding, wildfire, blizzard, earthquake, and tornado. His  mission is to provide the most updated and accurate info on how to stay safe before, during and after these disasters. For those of us who like to-do lists, this article has what you need for several of them! And if you want even more info, follow the links included.  Thanks, Oliver!

Winter can be a fun time for many families, especially on snow days; sledding, building snowmen, and drinking hot chocolate are some of the best parts of cold weather.

However, winter storms can cause hundreds or even thousands of dollars’ worth of damage and can leave your home–and your family–exposed to the elements. Even if there’s no damage, there may still be power outages and other issues that can lead to emergency situations.

Fortunately, there are some simple ways to prepare for a major winter storm, and it’s important to do so as soon as the weather turns cold. In many parts of the country, fall and winter are unpredictable seasons, meaning the snow could fly at any time.

Being prepared means having the right tools to deal with Mother Nature plus a plan for your family’s safety.

Read on for some of the best ways to get started.

Winter Prep your home

It’s a good idea to walk from room to room inside your home and look for ways you can prep them for winter weather. This means reversing the direction your ceiling fans turn in so they’ll push down the warm air that collects near the ceiling; having your fireplace and chimney checked and cleaned; laying aside enough firewood to get you through the season; checking and replacing furnace filters and making sure the unit is in good working order; installing a carbon monoxide detector or replacing the batteries in the one you have; and protecting your pipes from freezing. For some tips from professional property managers on how to help your pipes stay warm even in freezing weather, read on here.

Think emergency

It’s important to think about how you’ll handle an emergency. If the power goes out, or if you get stuck inside your home due to heavy snowfall, what will you need to get through several days?

Backup generators, kerosene heaters or wood burning stoves (CO warning!), flashlights, extra batteries, a small radio, blankets, a reserve of food along with any cooking tools you’ll need, medication, and anything your pets may need is a good start.

Make a list and ensure you have everything you need to get yourself and your family through an emergency.

For tips on how to handle heating when the power is out, check out this article from the Red Cross.

Stock up on tools

Bad weather in winter means you’ll likely have to do some shoveling, so stock up on salt and make sure you have the right tools, including sturdy gloves that will protect your fingers from the cold and a shovel that’s in good shape. (The Red Cross article mentioned above reminds you not to overexert yourself in cold weather, too!)

Remember to have a camera handy for when the storm is over so you can photograph any damage for the insurance company. This includes damage to your roof, windows, deck, and gutters. If possible, take “before” photos of these areas in the fall, before the first snow. For more tips on how to handle any storm damage, check out this article from the real estate professionals at Redfin.com.

Get your car ready

Winterizing your car will take some collaboration between you and a mechanic, who can check  fluids, tires, and windshield wipers and make sure everything is ready for the cold.

What you can do is stock the car with a jug of water, blankets (foil emergency blankets are compact and inexpensive), flares, a spare tire and set of tools, a flashlight, and a bag filled with snacks such as granola bars in case you get stranded for a little while.

Look outside

The exterior of your home is just as important as the interior when it comes to a winter storm. Branches that are dead or hang close to your house should be trimmed so they don’t become weighed down with ice, and the gutters should be cleaned so icicles don’t form and clog them up. Clear walkways and make sure you have plenty of salt or brine on hand to keep them from becoming slippery hazards.

Remember that each family member should be aware of your plans for winter weather; talk about what you’ll do in case of an emergency and where everyone should meet in case you get split up. Keeping communication open will ensure that everyone stays safe.

Thanks for reading, for making your own check-lists, and being ready for winter.  Here in Southern California we continue to have historic high temperatures — 91 degrees on Thanksgiving Day! — and NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) says that two-thirds of the continental US will likely experience warmer-than-normal conditions this winter season. So, things may not be quite as bad as they could be!  

But no matter the long-range outlook, a cold snap or two will surely happen. Be ready.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

 

 

Stop! Don’t drink that water!

No matter where you live, you could experience a WATER EMERGENCY any day of the week. Why, in just the last couple of weeks, for example . . .

Boil water alerts have happened in Richmond, KY, in Detroit, MI and in Cocoa, FL. Where I live in Southern California, water main breaks took place in Reseda, Gardena and right on Wilshire Blvd in Los Angeles.

These are not your extraordinary natural disasters.

We have all been sensitized to the need for clean water in a wide-spread emergency. We watched as the people of Beaumont, TX struggled without their water system for 10 days after it was flooded. And we are still watching the people in Puerto Rico for whom water of any quality is nearly impossible to get.

We understand what happened in these places, devastated by historic floods and storms.

Today we are taking a look at local problems.

Rather than a huge catastrophe, it’s more likely that we’ll need to be ready for a localized water problem.

Most of these local problems stem from two things:

1. A water main break, a repair, or regular maintenance that shuts the system down
2. An electrical power outage to a water plant or facility

Whenever the water pressure in the system drops, no matter from whatever cause, the water can be contaminated – mostly with dirt and/or bacteria.

What are the signs of danger?

You don’t need to wait for an official news announcement. Sometimes, accidents happen and you will know before the authorities do.

= Your water pressure drops suddenly.

If you notice an unannounced and dramatic drop in water pressure, we recommend you instantly turn off your water to protect the water already in your home’s system. You can always turn it on again later.

= Your water turns murky.

You may see unusual foreign matter in your water. That murkiness is called “turbidity.”  Don’t drink this water – and start thinking about a way to filter it to remove the junk. (More below . . .)

= Your water contains bacteria, parasites, etc.

Unfortunately, your water could contain all kinds of dangerous microorganisms and still look clear and clean. (My son came down with giardia when he got water in his mouth from a high mountain stream. He wasn’t even drinking it – but the resulting diarrhea put him into the hospital for 6 days!)

When water comes through a properly-operating system, these contaminants are removed. If the system fails, so does any guarantee of cleanliness.

That’s when you could get a Boil Water Alert.

If there’s a possibility that your water system has failed or your supply is contaminated, you could get a Boil Water Alert. Officially announced or not, you have several options.

Option One. Switch immediately to bottled/stored water that you know is clean. Use it for drinking, cooking, and washing. This is an emergency; that’s why you have emergency supplies! (If you haven’t put together supplies in advance, and you have to head to the store to buy them, you may be shocked to discover high prices, or worse, empty shelves.)

Option Two. Boil your drinking water until you know your water is safe. Bring water to a rolling boil, boil for one minute, then let cool down. Use this boiled water for drinking, brushing your teeth, preparing food, etc. Do NOT use your dishwasher, ice that was recently made, etc.

Option Three. Disinfect your water if you can’t boil it. One alternative is to add 1/8 teaspoon of regular, unscented household chlorine bleach to a gallon of water. Mix and let stand for 30 minutes before you use it. If you need to, strain cloudy water through a cloth or filter paper before you disinfect it.

You can also disinfect water with water purification tablets. Easy to carry and manage, they are designed to be used in bottles and canteens; just make sure they dissolve completely! (Keep reading for more on water purification.)

How long will you need to boil, disinfect, etc.?

The methods listed above will work well for a day-long water outage, or a week-end camping trip. However, depending on them for days or even weeks at a time will be trying, at best.

If you receive a Boil Water Alert, you can assume it will last for at least 3 days. It takes 48 hours for water quality test results to come back!

If the emergency is much bigger or more serious, you need to have plans for the long term. As you know, it’s recommended that you plan for a gallon of water a day for each person in your family. A family of four, for 3 days, needs 12 gallons. If the emergency lasts 10 days (which is what I think you should plan for), you’ll need 40 gallons. That is a lot!

Now, first off, I would assess my water supplies. Some of your water supplies may be of better quality than others. I’d plan to use “pure” water for drinking and cooking, but would consider using a lesser quality water – like from the rain barrel — for washing my feet. (Obviously, water that you know is contaminated with toxins or dangerous chemicals should not be used at all.)

Maybe your family of 4 doesn’t really need 40 gallons of pure drinkable water. But it still needs that much total water.

How to manage your need for gallons and gallons of water?

Here are a number of suggestions for sources of emergency water. I hope these are all familiar to you! But the question is, have you taken action to be sure they are available for your family right now????

Purchase and store bottled water.

You will be tempted to rinse plastic bottles that you’ve emptied of juice, milk, or whatever, and use them to store water.

Don’t.

You will find it nearly impossible to get these containers clean – and thus, the water you store in them will be suspect. Other options may cost more, but you won’t have to worry about ADDING to the emergency with tainted water!

One-time use plastic bottles of water are cheap, readily available, and easy to move, stash around the house, etc. You can keep regular cheap bottles for 6 months; after that, replace with new ones. (Reusing a plastic water bottle isn’t recommended. The cap collects bacteria from your mouth . . .) Square plastic bottles may be a bit sturdier, and are a lot easier to pack/stack.

A 24-bottle case of bottled water is about 3.2 gallons and weighs about 30 pounds. In my neighborhood I can find them on sale for less than $5. A dozen cases would just about meet your 4-person family needs.

Don’t stack these plastic-wrapped cases too high, because they will collapse and break.

Note: Half gallons of water a lot more convenient and efficient, if you can get them.

P.S. If you click on THIS image, you’ll go nowhere. I think you’ll do better to shop locally and bring home cases of water yourself!

Stack water using interlocking water bricks.

Having had thin plastic bottles break in my storage shed, I strongly recommend water bricks! (That’s why I’ve included a BIG picture here!) Yes, they are an investment, but are so much more reliable and far more efficient for storage!  They are of heavy plastic and designed to interlock and stack like Legos. (The manufacturer suggests stacking them no more than 4 ft. high.) Each regular brick holds 3.5 gallons, and weighs just over 30 pounds when filled. You can fill with clean water from the tap, seal, and store for several years. Or, add water preserver for more peace of mind.

You can even add a spigot to your order of bricks to make them easier to use.

A dozen or so bricks would work for our example 4-person family for 10 days. Click here to get price and details from Amazon.

Store water in a 55 gallon barrel

I’m referring here to barrels that are made specifically for this purpose. (Our neighborhood emergency team was able to make a great group purchase one year. Haven’t found anything like it since!)

You’ll need a spigot and a pump to get the water out of the barrel. And naturally, you won’t be able to move this water supply, since a full barrel weighs over 400 lbs. Find a good spot, place the barrel on a wood platform — a couple of level boards will do — so it doesn’t touch the cement floor, fill it carefully so as not to introduce any dirt, seal closed, and put a cover over it to keep it clean. Refresh your water once a year for best results.

One barrel could serve the needs of a 4-person family for 10 days. The barrel shown here comes as a kit, complete with a bung wrench (to turn the plugs), a hand-pump, and water preservative. Get more info here.

Fill the bathtub if you have time!

Now, I wouldn’t necessarily suggest that you DRINK the water you’ve run into your bathtub. After all, just how clean would it be if an emergency were called suddenly? Still, consider buying a bathtub liner designed for this purpose. Open it into the tub, fill from the faucet. Some models have a top to keep the water as clean as possible. Check out the link below to a full kit.

WaterBOB Bathtub Emergency Water Storage Container, Drinking Water Storage, Hurricane Survival, BPA-Free (100 Gallon) (1)

Scoop out of the swimming pool? Maybe not.

The water in your pool MIGHT be drinkable if you put some in a glass jar for several hours and let the sun evaporate the chlorine. Still, the chemicals in the water, not to mention ordinary dirt from leaves and dust AND whatever your humans leave behind . . . make this a bad choice for drinking and cooking.

If the electricity is out, then the cleanliness of the pool will deteriorate even more quickly because the pool pump and filters will stop working. Again, filter and clean it as best you can, and then use for purposes other than cooking and drinking.

Turn to collected rainwater, streams and other open sources of water.

Now we’re back to the problem of contamination. The only way you can safely drink even from a clear mountain stream is using a filter. The single-person LifeStraw is the standard – it will filter 1,000 gallons of water before needing to be replaced. You can get the LifeStraw many places for around $20. Naturally, get one for each person.

Not every family member will want to or even be able to use the LifeStraw, and it  won’t put water into a pot for cooking.
In this case, you’ll need a gravity-fed filtration system like the Katadyn or the LifeStraw family-size version. These hanging bags can filter several gallons of water in an hour. The image shows the LIfeStraw model, which filters 9-12 liters/hour. Click on the image to find out more.

With a filter system like this you’ll easily reclaim the 4 gallons a day you need to keep your family going for an extended period.

Purification tablets are a convenient back-up.

Water-borne diseases are the dangerous aftermath of many natural disasters, when people bathe, drink or eat food that has been exposed to infected water. Children are particularly susceptible to the bacteria and protozoa in unclean and unsafe water.

Fortunately, it is easy to add water purification tablets or liquid to your emergency supplies list. Potable Aqua, shown, is a well-respected brand.

At home after the boil-water notice has been lifted?

It will take some flushing to be sure your home systems are clean and ready to go back to work. Some recommendations:

• Flush hot water faucets for 15 minutes, and cold water for 5.
• Change your refrigerator water filter and any other water filters.
• Empty ice cubes, run through a cycle and discard those cubes, too.
• Run your dishwasher empty for a cycle. Then rewash everything that came into contact with water just before the boil-water notice.
• Discard and clean containers, then refill any water used in humidifiers, CPAP machines, electric toothbrushes, etc.

Be ready for a short-term or a long-term outage, and you’ll sail through. If you’re NOT prepared, or your neighbors aren’t prepared, something simple could turn into a real emergency, or even a disaster.

Take action today to store emergency water. It’s easy when everything is operating as it should. When the system is broken, it may be too late.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S. I didn’t account for the water that pets may need.  Be sure to build that into your plan!

Just waiting for you to make a mistake!

It’s “Spring Forward, Fall Back” time here again this weekend. Along with re-setting the clocks, this time of year now has expanded to include reminders for emergency preparedness.

Of course, you know about checking the batteries in your smoke alarm. But that’s just the start! So read on, for some simple actions that if overlooked could put you in BIG trouble.

To the extent that your safety and security depend in part on your neighbors’ preparedness, be sure you share this list with them, too!

1-Change the batteries in your smoke alarm.

You should know this statistic from the National Fire Protection Association by heart: Three of every five home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.  Nuff said?

And here’s a real life story to go with the statistic.

A couple of years ago on a Saturday, the local fire department, police department cadets, some EMTs, and the Red Cross, supported by our Neighborhood Emergency Response Team, installed 461 new smoke alarms in our neighborhood! (Funded by a grant, in case you’re wondering.)

The alarm packaging said, “10-year guarantee” so naturally we were all annoyed when people began reporting that their smoke alarms were “chirping.”

Here’s what we discovered about alarms chirping:

• Nearly all people who heard the chirping incorrectly identified where it was coming from! In nearly every case, it was from an already installed OLD alarm, and not the new one.
• The 10-year guarantee works for the mechanism. When it comes to the battery, the guarantee applies only to alarms that have sealed lithium batteries. If your smoke alarm has a replaceable battery, check it and replace it or it will surely start chirping, like ours did, in the middle of the night!
• Every battery has an indicated life. Just remember, you may buy new batteries today but you don’t know how much of that “life” has already expired while the battery was on a shelf somewhere.

Upshot? Simply replace your alarm batteries twice a year when the time changes. A few dollars invested can save your life.

2-Change the batteries in your walkie-talkies.

Same concept: when the emergency hits, if you don’t have fresh batteries, you may have lost an important tool.

Walkie-talkies take AA or AAA batteries. Over the years we have tested different brands and over the years the “winner” in the test has been different every time!

Get the right size, get the longest life available, and TEST them regularly. Every month we catch a couple of dead Walkie-Talkies during our monthly drill. (Of course, if people forget to turn the Walkie-talkies off after the drill, the chances of the batteries going bad are about 100%.) (And corroded batteries can destroy the walkie-talkie, too.)

Don’t have Walkie-talkies for your group or family? Here’s our walkie-talkie reviews to get you started on adding some.

3-Check your fire extinguishers and replace if they have lost pressure.

Fire extinguishers can last many years, but – Do you really remember when you bought yours?

A good extinguisher has a pressure gauge to help you track its functionality. Check the gauge when the time changes, if not more frequently. Not sure if the extinguisher is any good? Get a new one.

Looking to re-charge your extinguisher? We’ve looked, and haven’t found a reasonably-priced service. Maybe you can find one, but chances don’t seem to be very good.

4-Refresh your first aid kits.

We’ve written before about the drawbacks of most purchased first aid kits.

Still, you’ll want to start with a basic kit, and add your own enhancements.

At the left is a starter kit, available at Amazon, that looks even better than ones we’ve recommended before. Click on the image to get full details, but note to start with that this kit has soft sides with pockets labeled so you can see everything at a glance.  (Most of the inexpensive kits that I see are simply a zippered container with contents thrown in.)

Any first aid kit needs customization, and that’s where a regular check-up is important. At the time change, pull together all your kits (from your cars, your Go-Bags, etc.) and look in particular for . . .

• Small medicine bottles whose contents have dried up completely.
• Tubes of medicine that have been accidentally crimped or punctured and are oozing gook.
• Band aids that have torn packaging and thus have lost sterility and stick.
• Pills that have expired.
• Scissors or other tools that have mysteriously developed spots of rust.

Repeal and replace as appropriate!

5-Clean out coils and filters to prevent fire.

We’re talking refrigerator, heater, and clothes dryer. All these collect dust and lint in hard-to-see and harder-to-get-to places, and can overheat or even (in the case of the dryer) burst into flames.

Enlist help to move or open any pieces of equipment or access doors, and attack with the wand and the crevice tool of your vacuum cleaner.

When you’ve finished vacuuming, empty its dust container and replace the filter in the vacuum, too.

While we’re on vacuum cleaners, a couple more safety notes:

• Don’t leave a vacuum cleaner running while you go to another room. It can overheat and start a fire! (Just go onto YouTube to see a number of dramatic examples. . .!)
• Check the cord and plug of your vacuum to be sure they aren’t damaged or frayed. These cords get hot! (Even the cord of my quite new Navigator gets really warm, just from being in normal use.)

That’s it.

You may have discovered that your 60 minute time change job has turned into a multi-hour project!

However, once you’ve gone through the steps once, it’ll be easier next time. Also, you may be able to turn the whole thing into a family bonding exercise by delegating different jobs to different family members, and presenting it as a contest!

However you get through the 5-point list, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing your home is good to go for another six months. And you won’t be caught by an emergency just waiting to happen — as represented by the eager dinosaur in the picture!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

Ever been accused of being overly protective of your children?

Maybe it’s true. And it’s doing them a disservice, because . . .

When it comes to an emergency situation – you MAY NOT BE THERE to protect your child!

The good news?

Children are trainable! They are resilient! Give them tools to work with, and they can surprise you.

(Heck, this goes on throughout your life as a parent!)

Start where you are.

Here are some questions you can ask your kids to see just how well they would manage BY THEMSELVES in an emergency.

Of course, the first reaction for most small children would be to run crying for you. But what if you are not there? These questions are designed to help your child think past that initial reaction and move through to the next step.

How well the question-answer conversation goes will depend for the most part on your own ability to guide it in a meaningful way – i.e., with the right amount of information for each child. (It’s easy to go overboard . . .!)

But if you can help your child realize that there is a course of action he or she can take that will be smart and that will help . . . then you’ve made a huge difference in how well things will turn out.

So, some sample questions. Pick one to start with.

1. If there’s a fire in the house, what would you do first?
2. If you are at the park playing, and you feel an earthquake, what would you do?
3. If you’re home alone, and you hear our smoke alarm go off, what would you do?
4. If a policeman is knocking at the door, what would you do?
5. What if you try to call 911 and no one answers?

These are pretty tough questions. Your child probably won’t be happy even thinking about something happening when he’s alone.

Still, given a bit of encouragement, your children can probably come up with some good ideas.

The purpose of the conversation is to remind your child that emergencies DO happen, to figure out what your child knows already about dealing with them, and then identify more good ideas and turn them into action steps.

Build simple action steps with your child.

What follows are some examples of action steps that might be appropriate. You will build your own list, depending on where you live, the makeup of your household and the skill level of your child.

• Be sure you can tell a Firefighter or a Police Officer your whole name (first Name, last name) and where you live (your street address). (I’ve met 6 year old children who are unable to talk to adults.)
• Memorize your home telephone number or a parent’s cell phone number. (This applies to older children, too!)
• Know at least two ways you can get out of the house. How can you get out of the second floor of the house if you can’t go down the stairs? (Only kids who like the idea of “escaping” have really considered this!)
• If the lights go out, find a flashlight. (Where?)
• Fix a meal while you’re waiting for things to get back to normal.
• When you feel an earthquake, the first thing to do is: ____, ____ and ____. (Children in California schools know this one.) What if the earthquake happens at night when you’re in bed? (Cover your head with the pillow. Don’t jump up and run barefoot through the dark house! Flashlight? Shoes?)
• Call 911 in an emergency.  (Having a landline will allow even small children to call for help. If teens and adults all just have cell phones, a small child may have no options.)
• If there’s no answer at 911, what does that mean?
• Don’t automatically open the door because someone says so. (What else could you do?)
• When you can’t stay in the house, or can’t reach it, go to our “safe place.”
• If you have to leave in an emergency, grab your go-bag.
• In an emergency, wear shoes.
• And more . . .

Now, it’s on to the most important, third piece of this plan.

Practice the action steps.

When a disaster disrupts your child’s regular routine, a back-up plan THAT’S BEEN PRACTICED will fall into place. Without that practice, the child will likely be unable to make any good decisions.

Every one of the steps you’ve come up with in your conversations can be practiced.

Here are examples that you can use as starters.

• Go room-by-room through your house and identify 2 exits from each room. (Windows work if they’re not blocked by bushes or bars.) You may want to draw a floorplan of the house and show those exits.
• Climb to the second floor to see how to get out without going down the stairs. If you have a fire escape or an emergency escape ladder, assemble it and climb down. If you or your child can’t make it down, you can’t count on the ladder to save anyone!
• Practice reciting address and telephone numbers. The number of your out-of-state contact should be on your list of memorized numbers, too. IF YOUR PHONE IS OUT OR GONE YOU WON”T BE ABLE TO PULL UP NUMBERS FOR AUTOMATIC DIALING.
• Pick a place for flashlights or emergency lights and make it a game to find every one. Try to keep the lights in their assigned places so you could find them in the dark.
• Make sure your child can prepare a simple (uncooked) meal while she’s waiting, or get to an emergency snack. This simple job will be reassuringly normal.
• Practice making phone calls using a variety of phones.
• Build family go-bags together. Right on top: SHOES (and then a flashlight). Stash the bags in an appropriate place.
• Grab your go-bag and take a walk to your “safe place” (assembly point) outside the house or further away in the neighborhood. Have the child lead the way. Take the walk again, in the dark.
• Practice communicating using walkie talkies.

Add more skills as your child gets older.

Schools train children on some of the basics. Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts have emergency preparedness and first aid training, too. FEMA and CERT offer programs especially for high-school-aged children.

If you take your kids camping, that’s a perfect time to practice a whole other group of survival skills: building a fire, understanding how to build a shelter, knowing when it’s safe to drink water, “capturing” water using a plastic bag over a branch, tying knots, using tools, administering basic first aid, reading a compass, etc.

If you are looking for more info on preparing children, consider these resources:

www.fema.gov/children-and-disasters

This page lists a whole collection of resources aimed at different age levels and different audiences (for example, educators, social services, etc.). Some of the programs are co-sponsored by Ready.gov, the Red Cross, Dept. of Education, etc.

https://www.ready.gov

This easily accessible site has good descriptions of what to expect in a particular type of emergency (hurricane, tornado, etc.) and helpful suggestions for building a go-bag. (Don’t forget our Emergency Plan Guide booklet on how to build customized bags.)

The KIDS section at Ready.gov offers a series of simple comic books with accompanying tips for parents and educators.

http://www.savethechildren.org  Resources at this site include some downloadable checklists for parents and for child care professionals. The checklists might be appropriate for members of your emergency response group, too.

In summary . . .

Grab some of the resources listed here, and build disaster preparedness and response reminders and actions into your daily family routines. Add new “content” as your children get older.

Disasters will happen.

Unless you have prepared your children to take action without you being there to tell them what to do . . . they are more likely to be hurt, trapped or at the very least, traumatized.

Protecting your children from disasters isn’t as good as preparing them to get through successfully.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

Hard to imagine: “Puerto Rico residents still without communications, now into third week . . .”

But it was hard to imagine that the U.S. would be hit by back-to-back-to-back hurricanes and flooding, too.

Emergencies happen. Overnight they can turn into disasters. And if you’re caught in the middle, you want to know what’s happening and be able to reach out to let others know what’s happening.

It’s time to take another look at personal emergency communications.

What you’ll grab first – your cell phone!

Since most people have their phone within reach 24/7, it’s likely to be your first choice in an emergency. Phones can connect with family, receive electronic alerts, and come up with what to do in case of disease, traffic jams, etc.

Cell phone tip: Pre-program your cellphone with important emergency numbers (police, fire, utilities) and create a “group” with family members so you can reach them all quickly.

Your cell phone is an important tool, as long as it’s working.

Three reasons why your cell phone may not work in an emergency:

1. Cell phone towers are pretty sturdy, but can be damaged and even knocked down by big winds or a big earthquake. Result: no service at all.
2. Service can be overwhelmed by too many people trying to use it at once – ex., the Boston Marathon. Result: busy signal.
3. Your phone may, and eventually will, run out of battery unless you have made provisions to keep it charged.

Three ways to have a better chance of getting through. 

1. Text or tweet instead of calling. These messages need far less bandwidth and can be “stored” in the system until they’re deliverable.
2. Send your message or call your out-of-town family contact instead of local friends or family members. Naturally, this arrangement has to be set up in advance.
3. Carry a battery back-up for your phone – one of the power banks or a solar charger – to give yourself a better chance of eventually getting through. Some emergency radios can charge a phone, too. (Want more on batteries, power banks or solar chargers? Here’s an Advisory covering these devices.)

 No cell phone? Don’t forget to try a land-line.

When a power outage has crippled communications, a simple phone attached to a landline may still have a dial tone. Of course, you have to know whatever number it is you want to call!  (That’s why you have memorized a few numbers, right?)

And as we’ve said many times, the operator answering your cell phone 911 call only knows approximately where you are, particularly if you are in a high-rise building. A landline pinpoints your location.

Facing a longer term outage?

Puerto Rico has been cut off for weeks. But not EVERYONE there is cut off!

Three kinds of emergency communications are being used there by people who were prepared in advance of the storm.

1. Short-reach walkie-talkies. Depending on the quality of the instrument, the weather and the terrain, battery-operated walkie-talkies can connect people across the street or across town.We recommend that all families and neighborhood emergency response groups consider getting their members walkie-talkies (with extra batteries). Even small children can master their use easily. See a couple of examples below, and take another look at our updated Walkie-Talkies Reviews to see if you are considering adding walkie-talkies to your emergency supplies: https://emergencyplanguide.org/reviews/Best Walkie-Talkies/ 
2. Wider-reach HAM radios. This is the one option mentioned more than any other by the professionals in my LinkedIn group. Over 3,000 ham radio operators have been active in Puerto Rico since the hurricane hit. They have been assisting the American Red Cross to gather records about survivors, transmit personal messages to families, and help dispatch power authority crews. (Article: Amateur Radio Volunteers Aiding Storm-Ravaged Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands)You can get started with a HAM radio for less than $100, but realistically you’ll probably want a better device and additional equipment (power supply, antenna, etc.) so budget for more. Joe is a licensed HAM operator and wrote more about the radios and training, here: https://emergencyplanguide.org/getting-serious-about-emergency-radio-operations/
3. Satellite phones for world-wide connection. As the name suggests, these phones use satellites to carry their calls. When cell towers are down or you are so far from civilization that there are no towers (mid-ocean? Antarctica?), this might be your best bet for staying in communication.As you might imagine, it costs a lot more to own and use these phones. Prices for most devices themselves (some rather like a clunky cell phone, others more complex, like a computer with handset) range from $500 to $1500 or more. Prices for actually using the phones start at around $40/month at the low end, or you can buy by the minute. More details here. https://emergencyplanguide.org/ultimate-emergency-communications-device/

Examples of hand-held emergency radios

Most emergency radios are compact, though they are heavier than a regular cell phone. And, they will require practice before you can tune them successfully. Don’t think they are terribly expensive.  Most of them cost less than the latest Apple iPhone.  Some examples are below. Click on the image to go directly to Amazon for full details and current pricing. (We are Amazon affiliates. I’m happy to refer you there because items are almost always available and prices are often better than anywhere else.)

Baofeng -- Basic 2-way dual band HAM radio; VHF and UHF; costs around $70-80.	Yaesu -- Mid-range quad band HAM radio. Submersible. Yaesu makes several; this one costs around $500.	Irridium Satellite Radio. Click on image and go to Amazon where you should read the reviews, particularly the one about Alaska. Cost around $1,000.

And here are a couple of examples of walkie-talkies. We own and have used both models; the Uniden is what the members of our Neighborhood Emergency Response Team use and practice with every month. Click on the image to get details at Amazon.

Good basic walkie-talkies. Great for local group, family or workplace. Easiest-to-manage buttons. Cost around $40 a pair.	I like these because they're yellow and not so hard to locate in an emergency! Alkaline or rechargeable batteries; NOAA weather channels. Cost around $70 a pair.

If a radio and/or battery charging device sounds as though it makes sense to you, get started on your purchase now. It’d be hard to find someone selling one during a disaster.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S. An upcoming Advisory will be on serious solar panels designed to drive all these communications devices.  If you haven’t signed up to get ALL the Advisories, do so now! (Fill out the form below!)

 

How to Get Around After The Disaster

Recent flooding in Texas and Louisiana, and earthquakes back to back in Mexico, have again brought our attention to what really happens in a widespread emergency when it comes to getting out or getting around. Here are some of the issues we’ve talked about, and are talking about again, in our community as a result of news coverage.

Will roads be passable?

Here in Southern California, we’re not likely to experience wide-spread flooding, or anything like the frozen image above! Most of our likely natural disasters will be from rainstorm, fire or earthquake, and even then we assume that MOST of our streets will be passable.  At least, there is likely to be an alternate way around a blockage or breakage (as long as your GPS is still working).

However, a regular passenger car may not be able to negotiate a flooded or broken streets. And, if streets have fissures that are leaking natural gas (yes, pipes do break in storms and earthquakes), any combustion-engine vehicle could become dangerous in itself.

Also, given the long distances people regularly travel to and from school and the store, not to mention commuting to work, cars are likely to run out of gas if the emergency is prolonged. (Remember the images of cars lined up waiting for gas in Texas? When only 2 pumps were still operating?)

Alternatives to regular passenger cars

4-wheel-drive vehicles

Hardy survival types will naturally point to the value of having a 4-wheel-drive vehicle that can go off-road if necessary.  There’s no question that such a vehicle might be useful in an emergency, although it’s tough to justify maintaining one here “just in case,” since it’s not made for freeway travel.  And given the gas mileage of most of these vehicles, having supplies of gasoline would be a challenge. Still, as we saw with Harvey, high-profile pick-up trucks and SUVs played an important  role in rescuing people trapped by flooding. Here in California, being able to climb over broken curbs and streets might be a big advantage to such a vehicle.

Golf carts

In a big emergency, unless you’ve been evacuated, you’re likely to be staying as close to home as possible. And for getting around a disrupted neighborhood, a golf cart may be a good alternative to a car. Golf carts can travel on regular streets, on sidewalks and walking paths, and, of course, over open ground. They can be configured to carry two or four people. Some can pull a trailer to move heavier supplies, transport trash and even remove dead bodies (in body bags) to remote areas. (Sorry about the gruesome reference, but it’s a reality we have to face.)

Carts come in a variety of models and horsepower. You can expect to pay anywhere from under $1,000 to several thousand dollars, depending on the model, equipment, battery-power, etc. These carts mostly use an array of 6,8 or 12-volt batteries, just like in your car, and that means you will have a replacement cycle every 4-5 years plus the requirement to keep them charged.

Some golf carts are now being manufactured with solar panels built onto or serving directly as the canopy. These panels can keep the cart’s batteries charged indefinitely. Carts also come with (or accept) plastic or water-proof enclosure kits that make it easier to operate in inclement weather. (I don’t know if any snow tires are available for them.)

Golf Cart Update as of 9-19-2017. This morning I spoke to Julie at PowerFilm regarding their aftermarket solar canopy kit for golf carts.  Here’s what I found out.

The kit’s main part is a cover made of thin-film panels for the roof of your cart. If you’re not used to thin film, it comes in a flexible sheet — has been used by the U.S. military for years to lay out on the ground to generate power wherever they find themselves. In the case of the golf cart, the panel arrives rolled up. You unroll it and fasten it to the roof with what are essentially big snaps. There’s a charge controller (typically goes under the seat) and a 15 ft. cable to connect everything.

For our purposes, we’re interested in the fact that AS LONG AS THERE IS SUNLIGHT, the solar canopy will charge your batteries completely, and even if you’re driving, will keep the batteries from discharging as quickly as they would otherwise. The image shows the black solar panel, sized 36in x 48in.  Here’s the link to Amazon. Slide your mouse over the image when you get to Amazon and you’ll see the panels and the snaps in much better detail. PowerFilm Solar 48V Golf Cart Charging Kit (TXT model) The complete kit costs around $1,100.

In our community, it is likely that after a big earthquake it will be some days before First Responders can get around to helping us. So, our Neighborhood Emergency Response Team will be faced with transporting our First Aid team, or, conversely, elderly or injured residents to First Aid/Triage and/or hospitality sites. Battery-powered golf carts may be what we depend on. We have a number of them, owned by individuals and they have volunteered to make them available to our neighborhood ERT in an emergency. And this summer, our HOA purchased a golf cart exclusively for Association use! 

(Note: Think you’d like to drive your cart to the grocery store or the drugstore? Golf carts are street legal only in a few cities — mostly retirement communities. Such street-legal carts require seat belts, mirrors, turn indicators, etc. Check with your city before you decide to take your cart on the roads. )

Adult 3-wheeled tricycles

We also have a number of tricycles in our senior neighborhood. People ride them regularly for short trips or for longer ones, as exercise. The tricycles are satisfactory for carrying light-duty items (first aid supplies, blankets, etc.) in their rear-mounted baskets.

You can expect to pay anywhere from $250 to $500 per bike . . . and over $1,300 for an electric powered unit. (You’d also want a battery-recharge capability for the electric one.) (P.S. I had an electric bike a couple of years ago, and loved it! That extra assist when going up hills allowed me to arrive at work unflustered!)

If you’re shopping, check for SIZE (the image shows a 26-inch model: Schwinn Meridian Adult 26-Inch 3-Wheel Bike (Blue); Schwinn also makes a 24-in.), number of gears, and portability. Some bikes can be folded. Click on the image for details from Amazon about this particular model, and to see others. )

Obviously, if your area is rural and spread out or with lots of hills, the tricycles might prove problematic for your team members. In our case, they work satisfactorily for emergency tranportation as our inclines are not steep and all homes are accessible by streets.

If roads aren’t passable, you’ll be on foot.

Moving yourself or emergency equipment may be far more difficult if it all has to be done by hand — or foot.

Carrying something in your arms, or on your back, works for shorter distances and limited size and/or weight. What’s far more efficient?

A standard dolly or hand truck

We actually own three different versions of dollies here at our house, and we’ve gone though a number of them over the years! Here are some things to consider.

Lightweight dollies are suitable for carrying boxes of papers or books, a cooler, an emergency pack, luggage.  Most fold nearly flat for easy storage in the closet or trunk of the car. Check carefully about the weight the dolly can carry – and be sure it’s tall enough for you.

Expect to pay around $35 – $45 for a good, small dolly.  Click the links below for details.

Magna Cart Ideal 150 lb Capacity Steel Folding Hand Truck

Industrial-strength dollies convert from wagon/flat cart to dolly. Get the biggest tires you can find; they make it easier to go up or down stairs, or over rough ground. These dollies can carry items weighing hundreds of pounds. Here’s an example, at Amazon, with cost around $65. (Others can be far fancier, with prices considerably higher.)

Harper Trucks Lightweight 400 lb Capacity Nylon Convertible Hand Truck and Dolly

A wagon

Nothing is more serviceable than a traditional red wagon, just like this one! Radio Flyer Classic Red Wagon Click on the image of the wagon or on the link for more details, and then cruise though Amazon to see other versions. Some  have wooden sides, some are made of canvas instead of metal, etc.

A wagon is something you could probably use frequently — for gardening, hauling groceries from the car, etc.  — and then just commandeer in the case of an emergency. The best thing? Everyone knows how to manage a wagon, without any special training.

Of course, any item with wheels could be useful for transporting items in an emergency: a rolling cart, a wheelbarrow, a wheelchair, a skateboard. From a safety standpoint, just be sure to get something that is sturdy enough for your needs.

Oh, and don’t forget to have a few bungee cords handy for holding things down! We definitely prefer the cords with the wire ends, not the plastic ends. Here’s an assortment costing less than $15 :Highland (9008400) Bungee Cord Assortment Jar – 24 Piece

This isn’t all there is to the topic of transportation.

Action item: Use recent news events as a prompt for a conversation around your own dinner table, or at your local emergency response group. If you live where flooding is a possibility, you’ll want to add floating items to your transport list. Whatever, you may come up with some new and better ideas for your location and your family.

In every case, though, you’ll need these items BEFORE the emergency hits.

Virginia and Joe
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

 

 

 

 

 

How well would you have done?

“I’ve heard it a hundred times: Be prepared for emergencies!”

I’m sure you have. And I’m sure the people in Texas had heard it, too. But what we witnessed this week suggests that a whole lot of them were caught unprepared.

Let’s take a look at some of what we saw just this week. It might be useful for all our neighbors and friends, not to mention ourselves.

We have learned a lot about Houston, Texas.

So many people who had been through past storms just weren’t ready for this one. Why not?

This is turning out to be an historical event. That is, NEVER BEFORE SEEN!  Not a hundred year rain, or a 500 year rain, or a 1,000 year rain. Amounts of rain outside the insurance guidelines; amounts that required weather forecasters to tear down their charts and build new ones, live on the air!

One simple fact stands out to help explain the event. Sea surface waters near Texas rose as much as 7 degrees Fahrenheit above average, creating some of the hottest spots of ocean surface in the world. This heat is what caused the storm to develop so rapidly into a Category 4 storm. (Read more at The Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/08/did-climate-change-intensify-hurricane-harvey/538158/

One neighborhood after another fell victim to flooding. Why is flooding so widespread in Houston?

Again, one fact seems to stand out: “over-development.”

Houston has been called “The Wild West” of development. It’s the largest U.S. city to have no zoning laws. As millions of new residents have moved in, development has been allowed in flood-prone areas. Water management seems to be built on a patchwork drainage system of bayous, city streets and a couple of 80-year-old dams. (Looking for more background? Check out this article from the Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/investigations/harvey-urban-planning/?utm_term=.f2848cb00326)

The city just isn’t able to handle a big storm like Harvey.

(With more and increasingly violent storms on the horizon, you should be asking yourself about your own city’s plan and preparedness.)

Then we learned a lot from individual families.

From TV footage you could see and hear the differences between people who had prepared and those who hadn’t. Here are some of the images that stick with me, and questions we could all be asking ourselves.

1-We didn’t hear from people who actually evacuated safely before the rains hit. We did hear about some people who refused to evacuate. (One man was quoted as saying, “I got food and I got my gun. That’s all I need.”) Ask yourself: “Am I prepared to evacuate if word comes down – or would I resist, delay or flat-out not go?”

2-Many people were not prepared because they weren’t expecting a disaster. (“Lived here 20 years, assumed we’d be fine.”) Even if their homes weren’t flooded, when their neighborhood was surrounded by water, these folks hadn’t set aside enough supplies to shelter in place for more than a few days. Ask yourself: “How many days’ worth of supplies do I REALLY have?” (Follow-on question: What about supplies, including flashlights and batteries, for if the power is out?)

3-We heard so many stories from people who said they’d gone to sleep and then somehow, in the night, had wakened to find water in the house. If course, you don’t leave your TV on all night for weather reports. In an emergency, though, getting important communications in a timely fashion could mean the difference between considered action and panic. Ask yourself: “How do I plan to get emergency news?” (We’ve written before about emergency and weather alert radios that could be left on all night if need be! And here’s an Advisory with alert app info. And does your community have a Reverse 911 system, that is, an automated message delivery system that could notify you via telephone about impending flooding or other emergency?)

4-We saw image after image of people climbing out of boats with just the clothes they were wearing, perhaps gripping a small plastic bag with “valuables.” And did you see how many of them were barefoot?! Ask yourself: “Do I have an evacuation bag or backpack compact enough to carry or wear onto a boat or bus or even into a helicopter rescue basket?” (And does it have shoes in it?)

5-Pets were visible in nearly every shot. I saw a boat going by that carried probably a dozen animal carriers – just pets, no people! By the same token, I’m sure we all saw the image of the dog swimming at the end of his leash. If you have a pet, ask yourself: “Does my pet have a carrier? Can I get my pet INTO the carrier? Can I handle the carrier myself while helping my other family members?”

6-People were using landlines to call 911, and cell phones to share emergency messages via Twitter and/or Facebook. Ask yourself: “Do I know how to use social media in an emergency? Who would I send a message to? What’s their number/address?”

7-In the midst of everything, I heard newscasters mentioning that people were being urged to apply for disaster relief – like, immediately! (FEMA anticipates some 450,000 people will apply.) Ask yourself: “If I had to apply for relief from an evacuation shelter, would I be able to supply the necessary information?”

Here’s a brief list, taken from the DisasterAssistance.gov website, of what you need for the application:

• Social Security Number
• Proof of citizenship (non-citizen national or qualified alien)
• Insurance coverage you have (type, amounts)
• Damage you’ve sustained (photos?)
• Household income at time of disaster
• Contact information

You might be able to provide direct deposit details, too, if you have them.

Don’t let Harvey get by without doing something about your own preparedness.

So do you know people who STILL haven’t done any preparing for an emergency because they “can’t imagine it happening?”

If you do, and if you care about them, please forward this article while Houston is fresh in everyone’s minds.

If you know people who need even more of a push to build a simple evacuation bag, send them to EmergencyPlanGuide.org with the recommendation that they buy our guide to building a custom survival kit. (Actually spending a few dollars may be the impetus they need to take this seriously.)

If you need to refresh your own kit, or build MORE kits so you have one for each family member, the workplace and your cars, our workbook will help sort it all out. (It has pictures, lists, charts, product reviews and recommendations – everything you need to approach this systematically and get it done!)

⇒    Here’s the link to the Guide: http://EmergencyPlanGuide.org/custom-survival-kit/.

Let’s all of us use Houston’s story to add to our own knowledge and resolve. And let’s contribute to helping residents of Houston however we can. They are going to need help for a long time.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide team

P.S. One other thing we learned about Texas is that people pitched in to help their neighbors. It was inspiring. Let’s hope that our neighbors would help us and we’d help them in the same way.

Are you preparing for eclipse-related disasters?

Do you live in the path of the eclipse scheduled for Monday, August 21?

If so, you’d better be ready. There are some eclipse-related disasters that could happen and are likely to happen!

First, you could miss it altogether . . .

if you’re not paying attention!

What’s happening is that as the moon orbits the earth, its path will cause it to pass in front of the sun. This will create a shadow that will move across the earth — and across the face of the entire U.S., from Oregon to South Carolina. This is such a rare occurrence that it has been given a name: the Great American Eclipse — first time since 1918 that this has happened!

If you’re in the exact place where the sun, moon and earth line up, the moon/sun will look like the image above and the world around you will turn totally dark — if only for a couple of minutes.

Here’s how scientist Tyler Nordgren describes what to expect:

“The shadow of the moon moves over you, day turns to night for half an hour, the stars become visible in the middle of the day, the sun turns black and the most incredible thing – the sun’s corona: that million degree atmosphere that is invisible at all other times – suddenly you see the enormous crown, its rays of pale white spreading outward from the sun,” The Guardian

So, you don’t want to miss this one!

Action item: Here’s a super website that will tell you the time of the eclipse in your town, and show what it might look like.  Just replace “city” with your city (or a nearby one) at the end of the link:

https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/in/usa/city

Second, looking at the eclipse could damage your eyes!

By now you should know that you should never look directly at the sun, even with dark glasses. In fact, I just today read that counterfeit solar glasses have surfaced. (Amazon is actually giving refunds for fraudulent merchandise!)

How to know whether glasses you’ve bought will do what they say? Check to be sure the glasses are from a vendor approved by the American Astronomical Society, AND make sure they have the label ISO.

If it were me, I’d avoid glasses altogether and watch the eclipse “indirectly” using a pin-hole projector. Easy enough to make as a family project!

You’ll need these supplies – and you probably have everything at home already:

A cardboard box – the longer the better

Scissors and box cutter

Tape

A sheet of white paper

A square piece of aluminum foil

A pin or tack

Basic instructions:

• Cut a square hole in one end of the box, tape a slightly-larger square of tinfoil over the hole, and puncture the foil in the center with pin or tack. Make a SMALL neat round hole.
• Tape the white paper on the INSIDE of the box, at the end opposite the pin hole. This becomes the screen.
• When the eclipse starts, point the foil/pinhole end of the box at the sun. Put your head inside the box and look away from the sun at the white paper screen. There you’ll see the (reversed) projection of the sun and the shadow of the moon!

Need more? Here’s a great video demo of how to build the projector, perfect for kids. Our thanks to station WAPT in Jackson, MS:  http://www.wapt.com/article/diy-make-a-box-pinhole-projector-to-view-eclipse/12014830

Third, you could find yourself trapped on the highway.

Areas that expect to be in the path of the “totality” (entire sun obscured by the moon) have been planning for months for a massive influx of visitors.  I’ve been reading reports from various emergency services across the country (in particular, Idaho and Kentucky) about the steps they are taking to manage the hundreds of thousands of people they expect to try to get to “just the right spot” to view the eclipse.

Estimates of the number of people traveling to get into the path of the eclipse range from 1.85 to 7.4 million!

Police and emergency services are planning for traffic conditions replicating evacuations – that means, stop and go and maybe huge traffic jams. Even if you don’t intend to try to get to a good viewing place yourself, you may experience significant traffic congestion just trying to get to the local store.

In any case, be sure your car is full of gas and well supplied with water, emergency food and blankets, just in case you get unexpectedly caught.

As always, the more you know, the better you can anticipate potential problems and work around them.

Enjoy the eclipse!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S. We won’t seem much of the eclipse here in Southern California. Let us know what YOU see!

 

 

Safety Is Your Responsibility

Are you a business owner? in charge of emergency response at your work? an employee of any sort?

If you’ve been there a while, you should be able to check off every item on the Safety Checklist below. There are only 12 items.

A new employee, however, will have to make an effort to figure out all the answers. And if an emergency hits before he or she has done so, your business may be in jeopardy!

More In-Depth Info on Employee Safety

Some Advisories with more details for workplace preparedness:

• What does OSHA require? You may be surprised at how LITTLE is included in your required OSHA Emergency Plan — https://emergencyplanguide.org/emergency-action-plan-in-workplace-what-protection-does-it-really-provide/
• If you have to evacuate, what should employees do?  What critical steps need to be taken BEFORE people leave? Where should they assemble after the evacuation? —  https://emergencyplanguide.org/what-will-you-take-when-you-evacuate/
• This is the one area most often overlooked by preparedness teams: https://emergencyplanguide.org/are-your-employee-communications-a-disaster-waiting-to-happen/

If you want a more thorough discussion of how to build a Simple Business Contingency Plan – get a copy of our book, Emergency Preparedness for Small Business.

Suggested Next Steps for the Company

You can put this checklist to work in just about any workplace – office, factory, hotel, retail operation – wherever your business is located. Of course, you may prefer to use it as a sample and make your own, more customized version.

Either way, here are 3 suggestions for how to proceed:

1. Share this article and the safety checklist with management. See what items they can check off; are there any items no one has thought of, or knows the answer to? Be sure you understand which items might have some liability connected to them.
2. Decide on a plan for sharing the checklist (or a customized version) with all current employees. Turn it into a team effort, or a competition — whatever works to engage people and get them more aware of safety and their surroundings!
3. Add the safety checklist to your on-boarding process for new employees. Obviously, they will need a helpful partner to be able to get through the list. I think they’ll find it to be a comforting exercise and one that will impress upon them the company’s commitment to preparedness and to safety.

Disclaimer from EmergencyPlanGuide.org

This handy checklist is not meant to be a full assessment of employee or workplace preparedness. Rather, it is meant as a simple, easy tool to create more awareness among people who are working together.

If the checklist starts a conversation about what’s missing, consider it a bonus. And then, put together a plan to fill those gaps!

We are committed to a continuing conversation about being ready for emergencies. As always, the more the people around us know, the better off we ALL will be!

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team