Emergency Plans

sarenu1

So the FFFC got me thinking, I have no plan for emergencies.

We have the possibility of tornadoes, heavy snow storms, and flooding in our area.

What do you do to prepare for natural disasters?

I'm thinking I should probably invest in:

A battery operated or crank radio.  

Flash lights (we need some better ones).

Water

Food

We have plenty of storage in our basement, I just need to get an area set to store non-perishables.

My biggest fear is actually being housebound in the winter (we can get heavy snow or ice storms).

TJ1979

We have 2 emergency boxes (rubbermaid totes).  1 has things like canned foods, bottled water, medication/first aid kid, flash lights, candles/lighters, and a battery operated radio.  There is room in this box to stash more things if we had to pack and go, like perishable food, weapons, etc.  The 2nd box has all of our pertinent documents.

ETA: We also have a camping box with things you would need for camping, like charcoal, cooking supplies, camp shower, etc. that we could grab if we had to leave.

Amores0121

We have no emergency plans, either.  I don't even know if I own a flashlight.  Our biggest thing would also be snowstorms, flooding, loss of power. A lot of people in my area lost power for days several times this year.  However, DH bought a generator for work over the summer and he said if we lost power we could use it.  I don't really worry too much about the snow issue b/c we usually know when it's coming.

Last year we broke our snow record for the first time in over 200 years and it still had minimal effect on my life.

sarenu1

TJ1979 said:

We have 2 emergency boxes (rubbermaid totes).  1 has things like canned foods, bottled water, medication/first aid kid, flash lights, candles/lighters, and a battery operated radio.  There is room in this box to stash more things if we had to pack and go, like perishable food, weapons, etc.  The 2nd box has all of our pertinent documents.

ETA: We also have a camping box with things you would need for camping, like charcoal, cooking supplies, camp shower, etc. that we could grab if we had to leave.

What kind of canned goods do you have?

I'm considering keeping a container of rice, beans, and some canned foods in the basement for emergencies.

Amores0121

TJ1979 said:

We have 2 emergency boxes (rubbermaid totes).  1 has things like canned foods, bottled water, medication/first aid kid, flash lights, candles/lighters, and a battery operated radio.  There is room in this box to stash more things if we had to pack and go, like perishable food, weapons, etc.  The 2nd box has all of our pertinent documents.

ETA: We also have a camping box with things you would need for camping, like charcoal, cooking supplies, camp shower, etc. that we could grab if we had to leave.

Wow, that is pretty awesome. I may have to copy off your idea.  I told DD that I was going to make a box for the car with blankets, water, snacks, toys etc. very soon.  I figured this would be good for emergencies but also good for getting them to shut up when they're hungry. lol

blondolphn

If you have a small camping stove, anything you can add hot water to is nice to have on hand. This includes a lot of your camping foods, but also can include things like easy mac, ramen, etc. 

Into+the+Kitty

I replace our canned food every year and donate the stuff from the prior year.

I do pretty much what TJ posted, and when we are expecting a big storm I fill our unused bathtub with water.

unaveragejane

I have to restock our emergency food supplies. I used to keep a leftover box of MREs from Hurricane Floyd, but I looked at it last winter and realized it was over 10 years old. I know they last a while, but I think that was probably pushing it.

One thing I will try to remember to pack in addition to TJ's awesome list is my old pair of glasses. I'd be SOL if I couldn't see well. I will probably also put in FSTs for diapers and bandages, duct tape, and a utility knife.

Something else I did last year was store our camping cot and some extra blankets in the closet we use as a storm shelter. We are at great risk of tornadoes, and the darn things seem to crop up in the middle of the night.

TJ1979

sarenu1 said:

TJ1979 said:

We have 2 emergency boxes (rubbermaid totes).  1 has things like canned foods, bottled water, medication/first aid kid, flash lights, candles/lighters, and a battery operated radio.  There is room in this box to stash more things if we had to pack and go, like perishable food, weapons, etc.  The 2nd box has all of our pertinent documents.

ETA: We also have a camping box with things you would need for camping, like charcoal, cooking supplies, camp shower, etc. that we could grab if we had to leave.

What kind of canned goods do you have?

I'm considering keeping a container of rice, beans, and some canned foods in the basement for emergencies.

I know we have things like beans and meat (tuna, chicken, etc.)  I freaking hate canned veggies, but I know we have a few.  Canned fruit and soups too.

We've had a few hurricanes recently, so we had to put a box together.  Annual maintenance is pretty easy once you get one started.

Into+the+Kitty

Also, get these flashlights: https://smile.amazon.com/Nebo-Larry-Light-light-Magnetic/dp/B007BP9YC2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413564240&sr=8-1&keywords=larry+light

Seriously, they are amazing.

We also have some defensive flashlights, but the legality of them varies by state.

Amores0121

Into+the+Kitty said:

Also, get these flashlights: https://smile.amazon.com/Nebo-Larry-Light-light-Magnetic/dp/B007BP9YC2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413564240&sr=8-1&keywords=larry+light

Seriously, they are amazing.

We also have some defensive flashlights, but the legality of them varies by state.

what are defensive flashlights? sounds interesting.

unaveragejane

Something my dad also taught me is that you can run some appliances (like a dorm fridge) off a power inverter. We bought two marine batteries to run it. It allowed us to charge our phones and keep some fresh food when we lost power last time. The phones didn't turn out to matter much, though; the storms took out the cell towers!

sarenu1

Probably closer to a police baton. Larger flashlights can be quite heavy.

Into+the+Kitty

Amores0121 said:

Into+the+Kitty said:

Also, get these flashlights: https://smile.amazon.com/Nebo-Larry-Light-light-Magnetic/dp/B007BP9YC2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413564240&sr=8-1&keywords=larry+light

Seriously, they are amazing.

We also have some defensive flashlights, but the legality of them varies by state.

what are defensive flashlights? sounds interesting.

It's a small, super bright light that you can use to temporarily blind and disorient an attacker. Some of them also have last resort close combat weaponry as part of them (like if you jam it into them it will stab them) which is not legal In every state. Regardless, they're useful in an emergency because the light is so powerful.

Into+the+Kitty

sarenu1 said:

Probably closer to a police baton. Larger flashlights can be quite heavy.

Batons are also illegal in several states. If you plan on having self defense weaponry you really need to look into your states laws.

Critter015

Here we have had to deal with tornadoes, severe winds, and ice storms. Usually we just lose power but are able to drive an hour to stay with family who have power. I try to keep our pantry stocked with various non-perishables that require no cooking or could be warmed up on the grill. I also try to keep extra water on hand since we are on a well and no power = no water. Usually there is advance warning of a big storm and I will fill one of our bathtubs for extra water to flush toilets, wash dishes, etc.
I keep flashlights and candles in each room and 10-15 gallons of gas in the shed.

We are moving soon and our new house will have a storm cellar, so I've compiled a list of things that I will want stored down there and am working on slowly aquiring those. That list includes items for use if we are in the cellar for an extended period of time, as well as camping type equipment in case we come out of the shelter and find our house in ruins. I also have a small fire safe with important documents, vauables, and discs with pictures, etc. that I would take with me. At our new house we will also have a generator that can be used for the well and running the refrigerator.

DH is also a hunter, so we have several different guns and bows and keep plenty of ammo on hand for those.

TJ1979

Ah yes, gas.  That was a very valuable commodity during the hurricane.  We definitely keep some on hand now.

PipSqueak0313

I remember growing up in the 70s-80s when the question was how to survive WWIII.....and my family was like we have no desire to survive it....just kill us with the first bomb and we'll be happy. But other than having emergency supplies in the cars we never did anything (and still don't) so I'm not even sure how to go about preparing for one.

Kelly11235

We try to keep 30-90 days of food in the house as well as at least 3 days worth of water.

We have flashlights and candles for light, a fireplace for heat (unless the gas is out) and a propane grill for heating things up (stove is electric).

We also stock up on basic medical supplies.

In addition, we've got a pre-packed disaster bag that has extra clothes, food, blankets etc as well as a USB thumb drive with copies of our important documents on it.

When I say "we" I mean me.  My husband just sort of goes along with it.

countrycotton

DH was all into "prepping" a few years ago, so we have lots of canned and dry goods. We also have a stash of freeze dryer meals. County living pretty well takes care of the rest. We have a propane tank that we use for all thing heat wise, but would save it for cooking. We have a fireplace to heat the house, a generator for back up power as well as a welder that can be used as a generator. Well water that we don't normally drink, but is safe. The chickens, and other live stock could supply us with milk and meat. We keep a year round garden. I think we would be in better shape than most.

countrycotton

Texas. We also have a structure built around it that allow it to be almost like a greenhouse. During the few freezes we get each year we have propane heaters to add a little extra warmth. We've been know to have tomatoes into December.