Disaster Preparedness

[BIGNASTY]

Doesn't anyone believe in being prepared to fend for themselves anymore? Watching the news they said that the South is going to get hammered again. They went to the supermarket and the shelves were bare. They interviewed people and by the sounds of things nobody puts some extra can goods or water away for JUST IN CASE!!!

Some of them just didn't know what they were going to do? Its not hard to toss a few cans of food in the basket each week!!! Not all disasters get announced like the deep freeze coming, flashlights, food, blankets, extra clothing a way of making heat (that wont kill you) at least SOMETHING!!! to have on hand to stay alive for a week if need be. Don't have to be the best but at least get something to eat and drink.

Don't know of one place in the USA that cant be hit by some sort of disaster to where they might have to fend for themselves for a few days.

Like a bunch of sheep going to slaughter, following nose to butt waiting for someone to bail them out I guess!!

 

[Deleted member 995608]

I'm no prepper by any means but I have enough for us to keep alive for a while.

I guess when ya live far from the Home Depot's and Raley's supermarkets, a person tends to stock more than they need.

 

[JR]

I saw on the news in Atlanta they cancelled school for Two days...BEFORE the storm even hit :-laf

They say it is because they don't have the equipment to remove snow or treat the roads but I still have a hard time imagining how 2 or 3 inches (not feet) can cause such a disaster. The road crews around here don't even start waking up until there is that and alot more on the ground. Just the other day I was headed into work at 400 in the morning running a north/south road was busting snowdrifts that looked to be dang near knee deep. Maybe not quite that deep, but every bit of 12". And this was on a "main road".

Speaking of which, 2 weeks ago during a good snow storm I came across a newer Explorer in the ditch (on my way to work, early in the am). I stopped to ask if they were ok and if they needed help. The man said he would be grateful for a little tug since he wasn't in the ditch too bad, just in a lot of snow. As I was hooking my strap to their hitch I couldn't help but notice the license plate....Mississippi . I'm pretty sure by the way everybody was acting in the car this was the first time they had ever seen any white stuff.

 

[jgillott]

I am almost out of cans myself, of course I'm pretty sure you are not talking about beer. :-laf

As you said, I don't think it is a location issue as much as it is a lifestyle issue. How many people can/will make a meal for themself or their family at this point, let alone survive on their own for a few days? I know that we have enough flour and sugar and other foods on hand to make it quite a while including lots of veggies in jars in the basement, water in bottles, and 2 springs on this place that run all year long. We probably have 5-6 cords of wood stacked out back and even an old outhouse by the barn if things get really bad.

The one thing that I am very guilty of is that I keep absoutely no cash on hand. I haven't even carried money in my wallet in probably 10 years or more. I would be in a mess if I needed even the smallest amout of cash in the case of an emergency.

 

[jgillott]

Speaking of which, 2 weeks ago during a good snow storm I came across a newer Explorer in the ditch (on my way to work, early in the am). I stopped to ask if they were ok and if they needed help. The man said he would be grateful for a little tug since he wasn't in the ditch too bad, just in a lot of snow. As I was hooking my strap to their hitch I couldn't help but notice the license plate....Mississippi . I'm pretty sure by the way everybody was acting in the car this was the first time they had ever seen any white stuff.

And where the heck were you when I had to call a wrecker for the second time in 2 weeks Thursday morning? #@$%!

 

[BIGNASTY]

I prep but that's just the way I am. But we have always had extra just in case. Penny being from Montana, the first time we had an earthquake in So. Calif she about had a breakdown, I being from Calif from an early age told her to calm down its not the big one!!! The very next day she was stocking the pantry with goods to make it thru the next big quake.:-laf

JR
Snow is not a reason to shutdown our schools, but when the temp get to - side of the scale they tend to close them, I cant remember what it is but they were closed for two days when the temps were in the -20 range. Just not real healthy to be out in that with young lungs. I can bet Mike is laughing at that one, Maine would be shut down most of the year if they did that up there.:-laf

I dont give much thought to money, if need be I can go kill something to eat and the car's are on the upper half of the tank all winter, water is not a problem and heat is the wood cook stove that Penny cooks on everyday, I think we have it pretty much in the bag. But the news just floored me. But like the above post most dont cook any longer so why have food around!!

IMO sad!

 

[jgillott]

Did I hear correctly that Atlanta had kids stuck at school overnight in the last storm? If so, they are probably very uneasy at this point.

 

[Missouri Mule]

Yes Atlanta had kids in school overnight and they had some kids stuck on busses overnight also.

Apparently because they were having warm weather when the snow started to fall it turned into ice. Then they had snow on top of that. (One of my brothers lives in the Atlanta area. He closed the store he manages down for a 1 1/2 days.)

 

[DonFitzwater]

I've prepared...................I'm sitting on a good stock of rum and beer in my condo in Maui at the moment...................should probably go get some more food...........and Coronas!

 

[Killgore]

Everybody runs to the store and buys milk, bread and TP. If they would just stay home, it would all be gone in two days. The schools are out and all it's doing around here is raining. The only folks running up and down the roads are TV crews trying to find a story and make something out of nothing. It's suppose to snow, maybe, this afternoon, but the current temp is 37. Tomorrow it's suppose to be up to the mid-forties and by the weekend in the sixties. The only problem we've got is the same problem you've got - too much mainstream media!
- Ed

 

[JR]

And where the heck were you when I had to call a wrecker for the second time in 2 weeks Thursday morning? #@$%!

Just a phone call away my friend
2 times in two weeks Don't tell me that new hearing aid has effected your vision now :-laf

 

[BIGNASTY]

I've prepared...................I'm sitting on a good stock of rum and beer in my condo in Maui at the moment...................should probably go get some more food...........and Coronas!

I have the limes for the Coronas!!!! and an unopened bottle of Patron for some shooters

 

[jgillott]

Just a phone call away my friend
2 times in two weeks Don't tell me that new hearing aid has effected your vision now :-laf

For the record, my brother-in-law was plowing with the '04.5 when it got stuck. The '07 was all me......:{

 

[WCPoe]

Did I hear correctly that Atlanta had kids stuck at school overnight in the last storm? If so, they are probably very uneasy at this point.

That is correct.
---
Two weeks ago we had a good snow / ice thing that absolutely crippled the Atlanta area. Some people were stranded in their cars for 20+ hours. It's what happens when the entire population of Atlanta got on the road at 2:00 PM after the ice was already on the roads. Can you say total gridlock. The schools released all the kids somewhere around the 1:00 to 2:00 PM time frame. School buses never got far from the schools. Some were stuck on the buses, some buses returned to the schools but some kids spent 6- 8 hours stuck on the roads. I think being stuck at the school was 10 times better than stuck on the bus in the middle of nowhere. At least the school was warm, had food, restrooms and most schools had communication with the parents.
That being said, ----> Fast forward to the current ice / snow event here. The roads are nearly vacant today. Maybe a bit of over reaction but at least not a repeat of the situation 2 weeks ago.
Conclusion ----> It pays to be prepared.

 

[BIGNASTY]

That is correct.
---
Two weeks ago we had a good snow / ice thing that absolutely crippled the Atlanta area. Some people were stranded in their cars for 20+ hours. It's what happens when the entire population of Atlanta got on the road at 2:00 PM after the ice was already on the roads. Can you say total gridlock. The schools released all the kids somewhere around the 1:00 to 2:00 PM time frame. School buses never got far from the schools. Some were stuck on the buses, some buses returned to the schools but some kids spent 6- 8 hours stuck on the roads. I think being stuck at the school was 10 times better than stuck on the bus in the middle of nowhere. At least the school was warm, had food, restrooms and most schools had communication with the parents.
That being said, ----> Fast forward to the current ice / snow event here. The roads are nearly vacant today. Maybe a bit of over reaction but at least not a repeat of the situation 2 weeks ago.
Conclusion ----> It pays to be prepared.

If 145,000 people without power is being prepared, then l im glad that we live off grid and don't have to depend on the infrastructure to provide the basics of life!! Our grid tied power is not that much different. The grid power has been down for a week at a time two times this year. Our lights are on and the house is warm. So much for being a toy to play with our off grid system seems to be JUST A LITTLE MORE than what some think of it. Rather than give aid to a bunch of half wits that live in other countries how about fixing some of the crap around the states. This kind of power outage is totally unacceptable in my opinion, but then it really don't affect me anyway.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/100000-power-georgia/story?id=22476701

 

[Tractorat]

Thats why I have a generator. Got mine maybe 15 years ago (?). Now almost everyone in the neighborhood has one. Gets noisy around here when the power goes out.

 

[Killgore]

Well, I suppose I'll have to eat a little crow from my previous post. We've got a little white stuff and I suspect my son-in-law who is a utility lineman will be saddling up getting ready to head over to Atlanta. When you live inside a tornado alley like we do, you are always stocked up, own a generator, have alternative heat sources, and have a place to crawl into when you hear the 'freight train' coming. Snow/ice storms, tornadoes, and the Talladega Race fans are just things you learn to contend with when you get a few years on you. - Ed

 

[jclark5810]

Yeah this places loses its lid over snow. However, most folks around here don't pay much attention to the weather reports. When we do get snow though, the whole town shuts down over a couple inches. When I went back home to Truckee a couple Christmas's ago we got about 3 feet every DAY for a week, it was business as usual though. I guess it just depends on what is considered "normal" weather.

 

[BIGNASTY]

most folks around here don't pay much attention to the weather reports.

I guess it just depends on what is considered "normal" weather.

Same here, snow is the norm for at least 7 months in varying degrees of intensity!!

The best weather reports come from the State troopers, I call the Sheriff on his Cell and ask what its like on the road if we intend to go some place, other than that just stick your head out the door you'll figure out pretty darn quick what the weather is!!

 

[tuffs93]

Big,
Haven't been on here for a while, but you right on the money on this one. 90% of the people can't eat unless they go to the store or drink water unless it comes out of a facet in the house. I am not a full blown prepper but we do have enough food for a couple of weeks, Diesel for the generator for that long, 2500 gallon water storage tank on the well and a Generator backup for that. We live in kinda a rural in Az and the power goes off ever time the wind blows. We also get snow, sometimes not a lot , but a few years back we got enough to paralyze this little town we live by and. ADOT didn't even get the main highway opened for almost a week. We lost power for 6 days, and yea, it was a pain , but dug our way out with a tractor the first day then had to wait for them to dig the highway out. We lost a couple of days of work but other than that it we never missed a lick. Your also right about Horses and Mules. Up until I had my back broke 20 years ago we had mules for gathering cattle and checking livestock. A mule will keep you out of trouble , a horse will get you into it. Mike