Comments on: Emergency Supplies: Natural Disaster and Roadside

By: Virginia

Virginia — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 13:32:52 +0000

Thanks for all the info everyone. Some things I haven’t thought of. You can also purchase ‘Bug Out’ bags also known as ‘Zombie Apocalypse’ emergency kits. They have MRE’s and water purification tablets in them. I pray I never have to use mine.

By: Amanda

Amanda — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 21:22:21 +0000

We live at the edge of the mountains in fire/earthquake country, and keep emergency supplies both in our house and car. Irreplaceable items are all in one spot to grab and go if we must. All our photos are scanned or digital, so that isn’t a problem. I keep the kids’ memory books, an antique christening gown passed down through my family, and copies of insurance policies there too. I also have an extra pair of contact lenses and a week’s worth of medication stashed with it. If we had more warning, we also have a list of other things to get – original art from the walls, sentimental objects, the contents of our safe, my jewelry box, stuffed animals, etc. We could just get in the car and drive away with enough food, water, clothing, toiletries/meds for 3 days as well as the priceless things money can’t replace. It would take as much time as picking up my purse.

Luckily, we’ve never had to use them for true emergencies. But sweatshirts, slickers, the extra water bottles and the odd granola bar really help for minor emergencies like getting stuck in traffic with hungry kids, the unexpected rainstorm, or drop in temperature.

By: Holly

Holly — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:49:43 +0000

Wonderful tips Kate – thanks. I attended the disaster preparedness meeting at my childrens school a couple of weeks ago and they had a representative from the Red Cross speak. The Red Cross has a few smartphone apps that offer some great emergency info. some of them are tailored to the type of natural disaster for your area (earthquake, tornado, hurricane, etc) and a first aid app as well. It has some excellent advice and info to help you get prepared should something happen and what supplies you would need. One of the greatest features is that when you set up the app, you can identify out of state contacts so that it can notify people if you are safe after an event, limiting the need for multiple cell phone calls clogging up the limited cell grids. There are many other features that I am sure I have left off, but go and check it out. Once you get yourself prepared, you can literally set it and forget it.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 17:45:11 +0000

I never heard of the water packs before Kate..we also have a water cooler that we can use for backup drinking water in an emergency..that is one think we did to prepare for Sandy when she was headed our way..we made sure the water jugs were all filled..