Tag: emergency supplies

Which half do you fall into?

A poll conducted first in 2012 by the Adelphi University Center for Health Innovation — and repeated since then with the same results —  revealed the following:

◊  48% of Americans don’t have a survival kit or emergency supplies.
◊  Americans believe they can survive an average of 16 days in their homes . . .but over half don’t have even a 3-day supply of non-perishable food and water.
◊ 55% of Americans believe that “authorities” will come to their rescue when disaster strikes.

If you had been a part of this poll, which half of the group would you have fallen into – the half with a survival kit and emergency supplies, or the half counting on someone else to take care of them?

Are you a “taker?”

There has always been political talk about our American Society being “a society of takers.” Most of the rhetoric has been distasteful, some has been ridiculous.

But when it comes to disaster preparedness, there does seem to be a “taker” group — a group that somehow expects others to take care of them. In my estimation, that “taker” half of the population seems to be either lazy, in denial or just plain . . . well, you add in your own best word there!

September is National Preparedness Month. People around the country are planning events to get neighbors and neighborhoods involved. Joe and I will be part of the activity: we typically have three different activities on our calendar this month!

When it comes right down to it, though, there’s only so much we can do. Ultimately, it is up to individuals.

It’s up to individuals . . . meaning you.

Remember that great advertising line, “He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.”? Here’s another version aimed at disaster preparedness: “It’s not hard, it’s just common sense.”  The first three steps are particularly easy:

1. Build or buy a survival kit for yourself and for each person you care about. Here’s a link to our updated Top 10 List Of Emergency Items for your kits. Or, if you just don’t have time to put them together, buy pre-made kits. Check out our emergency supply kit reviews to be sure you’re getting the most for your money.

2. Buy some extra food and water every time you shop, and stick it in the back of the cupboard. Eat from the front.

3. Get to know your neighbors. They are the ones who will already be there in an emergency. They are the ones who will come to your rescue, not the authorities.

Three simple steps will put you in the other half of the equation – where you belong!

Please share this article with the people around you. The more prepared they are, the safer YOU will be. And the better you’ll sleep at night.

Virginia Nicols

Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

Over the past weekend we attended a Rotary International conference in Phoenix, Arizona. (Joe belongs to the “eclub” that’s centered there. It has members around the world who meet weekly online.) As always, Rotary impresses and inspires us with its programs, and ShelterBox was a highlight for us this time.

150 lbs. of supplies in the ShelterBox

ShelterBox has been on the news a fair amount over the past few years; I remember Anderson Cooper in Haiti telling the audience how ShelterBox tents were being delivered after that terrible earthquake. And I read in the news just last week that ShelterBox was sending a response team into Moore, Oklahoma, to assess needs there.

It’s all in the name: ShelterBox.

What does ShelterBox do? Since 2000, the organization has provided emergency supplies such as tents, stoves, blankets and water filtration systems to help families rebuild their lives after losing their homes and possessions following a natural disaster or political conflict. Haiti was just one of their deployments; according to their website, they are currently at work in Jordan, Myanmar, and the Solomon Islands.

What’s in the box?

After all our recent focus on survival kits, it was interesting to see just what goes into a ShelterBox. The Box is meant to provide relief for an extended period, and for an extended family. The dome tent is modeled after a typical African bush hut, with built-in mosquito screens, groundsheets, ventilation and internal privacy screens so people can divide the space as they see fit. Thermal blankets, insulated ground sheets, treated mosquito nets and water purification equipment provide protection against contaminated water supplies.

The box contains a stove, pans, utensils; tools include a hammer, ax, saw, hoe, rope, pliers and wire cutters. There is also a children’s pack with books, crayons and pens. The volunteer at the Rotary conference told me that when a community is wiped out, setting up a school becomes a top priority, and these simple items can help get that started.

So what does this have to do with us?

1. Action Item:  Check out the ShelterBox website and see what they’re doing. Read stories of survivors who’ve been served by this organization. It’s inspiring.
2. Action Item:  Compare your list of long-term “survival supplies” with what goes into the ShelterBox. You may get an idea or two.
3. Action Item:  Consider donating or volunteering.

You can learn more at www.shelterboxusa.org.

(P.S., just so you know, ShelterBox USA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Sarasota, Florida.)

Where will your driver be when the disaster hits?

Delivering services to homebound seniors

At a meeting last week at the local American Red Cross, we were discussing a new program aimed at preparing the senior community for disaster.

Most of the people in the room represented companies that deliver services to homebound seniors. There were folks from Meals-on-Wheels, SeniorServ, and a whole group of home health care providers.

Home health care staff members drive from home to home to assist their elderly clients. In the case of an earthquake disaster, these drivers will likely be on the road in their car or in the home of a client when the earthquake hits. The drivers will NOT be at their own home, and they will NOT be at their employer’s office.

Homes with few if any resources

These senior clients are people who, by definition, are not self-sufficient. They may be disabled or frail. This means that the driver, caught in the home with the client, will be faced with taking care of the client as well as him or herself.

If the driver is on the road when the earthquake hits, what is her responsibility? To continue on to the client’s home when possible? Return to the office? Or head for home to join the family?

Responsibility of the employer

This situation raises several issues for the employer that need to be addressed through training or investment in appropriate emergency supplies and equipment. Based on the group at the American Red Cross meeting, there was no one correct answer. But everyone agreed that these questions DID deserve consideration, and a positive answer.

1. Do your drivers all have an emergency supplies kit in their vehicle?

2. Does the kit contain enough to share with a client?

3. Are your drivers clear about their responsibility to their clients in the case of an emergency?

4. Do you know how you will communicate with your drivers in an emergency?

5. Do you have a plan for communicating with your clients’ families in an emergency?

Are you an employer with drivers?

What emergency preparations have you made to cover your staff and your customers?  What liability do you feel you carry as the employer?  Please share!

If you’re looking for a checklist, you’ll find many, many of them online. FEMA offers up a 26-item list; the American Red Cross has a 36-item list, and different commercial companies (selling tools, pre-made kits, insurance, dried food)  have their own lists, some of which extend to hundreds of items.

Different lists serve different purposes

Page One of list

Over the years we have created or used different lists for different purposes. For example,

* At an introductory neighborhood meeting, you may wish to distribute a simple, one-page list with items that apply to everyone and that won’t appear too intimidating.

* In a community where people have had some training, a more comprehensive list would be a good idea. (We wrote earlier about the “door-hanger list” that we created for our community.) Naturally, adding items appropriate for the geography would make sense: rain gear, for example, or cold-weather gear.

* In a senior community, a list might focus on items that apply to older people: 14-day supply of medicines (and how to get your doctor to give you extras), extra eyeglasses, batteries for hearing aids, etc.

* A community with pets needs a completely different set of reminders. (You can get a copy of our Emergency Pet Supplies Kit here.)

* A quick reminder card, useful for teaching, might have only a half-dozen items or a specific, focused list of supplies (for example, what you need in your first aid kit).

Our Emergency Supplies List

The Emergency Plan Guide has prepared its own comprehensive list. We have found that breaking it into three sections makes it easier for people to focus on. The three sections are:

 17 basic items for a 3-day emergency

 11 more categories for managing an extended, 14-day emergency

 10 essentials to take if you must evacuate

What’s important is to get your list, and then take the time to see what’s missing from it based on your family’s needs. Add those items to the list, and start assembling!

Like many families, you may need to prepare not only for the three situations listed above, but you may also want to put together specialty kits to carry in your cars, for students away from home, or for the office.

Get started now!

There is no time to assemble emergency supplies after the earthquake, after the storm has hit, after the fire has forced you out of your home.  Action item:  Download the Emergency Supplies Checklist and get started.

Virginia
Your Emergency Plan Guide Team

P.S.  I am not called the “Queen of Lists” for nothing!  Stick around Emergency Plan Guide and you will discover a number of them. Lists help me think, and keep me on track.  I hope you’ll find them useful, too!