Disaster on top of disaster preparedness

[Hooked on Fenix]

I know we have had disaster preparedness threads in the past, but I wanted to focus on how we deal with multiple disasters at once since there are unfortunately so many cases of this currently. In California, we just got through a record heatwave, statewide rolling blackouts, record sized wildfires, and still can't be indoors in most places due to corona virus restrictions. I went to the beach (LA Jolla) over the weekend to escape the heat to find the water filled with sharks. I counted 7 sharks while I was swimming and apparently, there was a large hammerhead shark knocking people out of kayaks this last weekend at the same beach. In the Gulf of Mexico, we may for the first time have two hurricanes to deal with at the same time.

That said, we can discuss needed supplies and the minimum duration you should plan for having food and water to get you through it (48-72 hours doesn't cut it anymore), OPSEC for keeping your family, home, and supplies secured in an era where everyone posts all of their personal information online, when to bug in versus bug out, bug out bags, and planning. Mike Tyson once said, "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." General Patton said, "Plans are worthless, but planning is everything". We are living in unique times with disaster piled upon disaster. How do you prepare for it?

 

[Kestrel]

Sienna minivan w/ a full tank of gas (nearly 600 miles of highway range); connected to a battery tender in the garage.

Only three seats remain in the vehicle; instead there is a cot, sleeping bag, laptop computer, one months' supply of food, considerable water tankage, a full set of camping gear, and a spare set of hiking boots. One or two flashlights.

Two stoves (one w/ multiple independent burners) with multiple fuel options via adapters - propane, isobutane (lindal valve), butane;
Camping stove test (for car camping)
'Breakfast nook' for car camping

Spare AGM (deep cycle) battery with isolation switch, 1100W inverter (operating the included coffee pot)
Best technique to keep a second car battery charged onboard ?

With only the briefest time to fill water jugs and gather extra clothing, it has the ability to provide extended support for a number of unexpected situations.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

I think I'd want to bug in as long as possible, but if there's a fire or a lot of troublemakers around, I'd probably caravan with my family to a family plot of land out of state. We have a well and a generator to run it in case we lose city water. We have a water tower for water storage. We have some plants and trees growing food. We can hunt and fish for more if need be (after our regular food supply runs out) I have plenty of water filters for purifying water (Katadyn Pocket, Lifestraw Mission, Sawyer Squeeze and mini, MSR Trail shot, etc.). Have plenty of stoves for cooking food (Biolite stove, Biolite Basecamp stove; MSR Whisperlite, Whisperlite International, Pocket Rocket, Pocket Rocket 2, Primus Multi fuel stove and propane adapter (will run on almost any liquid or pressurized fuel), Vargo Triad XE alcohol stove, Vargo titanium wood burning stove, Sierra Zip stove, etc.). Have plenty of charcoal, wood, and wood pellets to run the cheaper fueled stoves for long term use. I'm not going to list off my flashlights as it would take too long. For safety, I have 21 years of martial arts training and my brother in law was a cop. However, I have medical conditions that require me to take a pill each day to live and I can't eat most foods due to celiac disease. My dad and brother have diabetes among other things so just bugging out doesn't make sense for us other than as a last resort. You can escape a bad situation, but it's hard to escape health problems. One of the last things I said to a black belt student before the school closed was "You know you're an adult when you start falling apart and you realize that the world is too."

If things got bad, we'd post shifts for security, grow crops for food, get through at least a few months before considering leaving, I'd teach martial arts to everyone on the property and maybe train the neighbors in exchange for supplies. I'd look into forming a network of friends and neighbors to trade skills and supplies with. If that all failed, we'd bug out for our property and live off the land.

 

[orbital]

+

Sharks swimming just offshore being a natural disaster-----
is about the same as seeing bears while camping.

somewhat kidding h.o.f, I do get your point

 

[richbuff]

... ... ... .... We are living in unique times with disaster piled upon disaster. How do you prepare for it?

Throughout history, the surface of the earth has been hostile, and people have been evil, and life has been tragic. Not all the time, not in all places all the time, and not everyone all the time. Just sometimes, some places, and some people. For hundreds and thousands of years, philosophers have asked "Why?".
2000 years ago, some very inspired people wrote down the answers. On earth, in this temporary life, with multiple disasters, with all kinds of peril threatening and menacing, I gird my loins with my iron rod of fire, follow the teachings of the inspired writers, and await the promised land.

 

[scout24]

I'm not as ready at a moment's notice as Kestrel's setup by any means, but the Mrs. and I had something of a dry run for this a few years ago. Our daughter was living near Tampa, Florida and a major storm was projected to make landfall. Her and her boyfriend had no intention of leaving. I have a 4wd 4 door 2007 Tundra with a cap that was loaded within about three hours with everything we would have needed to get to them and get out. 50 gallons of fuel, food, water, tools, shovels, chainsaws, comealong and towchain to clear obstacles if needed, sleeping gear, clothing, inverter and small generator. Plus our two dogs. Thankfully, the storm just brushed the coast but it was a great dry run. I think 3-6 months of supplies at home is a minimum you should strive for in today's climate.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

I'm wondering, do we have any members in the path of the double hurricanes about to hit in the Gulf of Mexico area or in northern California that has the San Fransisco Bay area circled by three large wildfires (they are expecting lightning to possibly start more fires soon)? I'm hoping they are prepared and have an exit strategy.

 

[RetroTechie]

It doesn't matter if there's one disaster or multiple ones overlapping. It all comes down to making sure the basics are there: WATER, food, protection from the elements (clothes, shelter, heating?, staying dry to avoid hypothermia, sunscreen), and staying healthy (avoiding risky water/food choices, 1st aid kit / medications you may need, vitamins etc). And look ahead to determine what's needed to keep those basics available.

Having the right gear is important. This need not be expensive (or take up much space). Knowing what you need and how to use it, is equally important.
And of course there's the mental aspect: stay positive, don't panic, don't worry too much about things that are out of your control, have a laugh every now & then. Getting through things is as much a state of mind as it is about equipment.
Ultimately we all bite the dust... Survivors just cheat death a few more times.

 

[turbodog]

After living through Katrina I will say 3 things:
gasoline
water
toilet paper

You already have enough of everything else you need. Neighbors will leave. You can eat their food.

In this heat, a small fan is almost a necessity. Modern houses are not setup to be very livable w/o functioning HVAC. If we lacked a fan I would probably spend most of the time outdoors under the trees, maybe under an ez-up.

We lived through Katrina. Dealt with power outages that lasted a month give or take. Gasoline...and lots of it. Full tanks in everything you own. Siphon tubes to salvage it from other vehicles, lawn mowers (mine held 11 gallons!), etc. Good sealed gas jugs that don't leak and are airtight.

Hurricane in the gulf always affects gas production.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Let's remember the rule of 3's when in a survival situation. You can last 3 weeks without food, 3 days without water, 3 hours without warmth/shelter, 3 minutes without oxygen, and 3 seconds without common sense (how long it takes for one bad decision to lead to your death). You can stay out of trouble most of the time if you never lose that last one.

 

[archimedes]

Let's remember the rule of 3's when in a survival situation....

... 3 months without hope, which is the one most often omitted.

 

[bykfixer]

We still have most of our corona stash of non perishables, toilet paper and other supplies. We've depleted most of our freezer stock from back when fresh meats were getting hoarded and filled spaces with frozen bottles of water. Same with the refigerator. The larger the container the longer said vessel stays cold.

Potential Laura track:

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Hurricane Laura is currently a Category 4 hurricane at 150 mph (7 mph short of a Category 5). Don't stick around if you're in it's path.

 

[markr6]

Looked like the "unsurvivable 20 foot surge" ended up around 9'? Still waiting to see the scope of damage beyond some windows broken out of tall buildings. Yes, glass isn't the strongest thing ever invented.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

In news about the California fires, because of all the prisoners being released due to trying to limit spread of corona virus in the prisons, they are down about 25% for prisoner firefighters available to fight these fires this year. The governor had to request help from across the country, Canada, and Australia to bring in more firefighters. Also, someone appears to be robbing the firefighters and cleaning out their bank accounts, possibly some of the prisoners that were released early. Here's a video about the looting:https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8s1vv7Jq1cl

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

A chemical plant fire has started in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura. It's releasing poisonous chlorine gas into the air around Lake Charles, Louisiana. People are being told to stay indoors and shelter in place. First a worldwide pandemic, then food and supply shortages, then Hurricane Marco, then a record 150 mph Hurricane Laura, now a chemical fire making it so you can't breath the air. I'm afraid to ask what's next.

 

[Kestrel]

Don't really know how a preparedness thread turned into a disaster thread, but that's not really the intent of this - unless members in the areas of interest post about their specific preps for them.

 

[raggie33]

Don't really know how a preparedness thread turned into a disaster thread, but that's not really the intent of this - unless members in the areas of interest post about their specific preps for them.

i have batteries flashlights beans and rice and a solar radio

 

[orbital]

+

People most fear the unknown or what they don't understand, so applied knowledge is your best tool.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Don't really know how a preparedness thread turned into a disaster thread, but that's not really the intent of this - unless members in the areas of interest post about their specific preps for them.

The thread is about disaster on top of disaster preparedness. This touches on disasters and preparedness for those disasters. I didn't want to limit the thread to only the wildfires in California and the hurricanes affecting Louisiana and Texas. They were examples of disaster on disaster. With a single disaster, you have an idea of what to plan for. Multiple disasters require more extensive resources, skills, and backup plans to get through it. This thread will likely have a mix of topics on planning, supply lists, and news or examples of disasters so we have an idea of what we would have to prepare for. We may learn what may work for a single event is insufficient for multiple sequential events. Things might happen that we thought were highly unlikely or impossible that we thought we'd never have to prepare for. That is the point of this thread, to get us thinking about preparedness, work on getting prepared, and to ask ourselves if something else goes wrong, "What can I do now?"