Source: superchefblog.com
On the morning I heard about the earthquake
& tsunami in Japan my first reaction was to kneel
in prayer. I'm sure you've been doing the same.
Source: Reuters
And can I say how impressed I am with these gracious
individuals. In the midst of such a devastating crisis, the
Japanese people have shown grace under pressure.
In the media we see stories of cooperation . . .
no looting . . . patiently waiting their turn for aid . . . and more.
I know there is a tsunami of prayers
being sent their way!
I've also been thinking
about
about
PREPARATION.
My guess is that we all live in an area where
SOME KIND of disaster could strike.
Personally, I live near a very large fault line.
In my area, experts talk about WHEN, not IF,
an earthquake will occur.
One thing we do to prepare--
have a "72 hour kit" ready for each
member of our family.
We keep them in backpacks which are stored
near the front door of our home.
(Even though it's nice & cool in the basement,
in our case we may not be able to get to them there!)
- We have names on our backpacks since each has certain things
we need--like eyeglasses or prescriptions -
Once in a while, I take everything out--
update & evaluate.
I've been working on this lately.
-Organized chaos!-
When purchasing food, I recommend
MRE's (meals ready to eat).
They usually last 3-5 years from
the date they were packaged.
In the photo below, I've shown you
how to decipher the code which shows
how old the MRE is . . .
Please note the arrow pointing to the number 0093.
The first 0 indicates the last number of the year the
food was packaged (2010). The 3 remaining numbers (093)
mean it was packaged on the 93rd day of that year.
-We also like this freeze-dried food. (Available at Walmart & Emergency Essentials.)
Usually you just add water to the bag & eat-
Here's a list of what I have in my kit:
Hygiene items: hairbrush, lotion, deodorant, hand sanitizer, soap, shampoo & conditioner, tampons, razor, t-shirt (rolled tightly), socks, toilet paper, toothbrush & toothpaste, small towel (rolled tightly).
First-aid/medication: latex gloves, scissors, rubbing alcohol, band-aids, gauze, medical tape, ace bandage, arm sling (large triangle of fabric & safety pin), OTC meds (i.e. ibuprofen, anti-diarrhea meds, etc.), PRESCRIPTIONS.
Food items: non-perishable food (preferable MRE's or long-lasting freeze dried), water, water purification tablets, salt & pepper, paper plates, tiny camping saucepan, sterno, waterproof matches, aluminum foil, fork, spoon, knife, cup.
Other good things to have: eyeglasses or reading glasses, radio, flashlight, extra batteries, duct tape, garbage bags, mylar emergency blanket, candles, notebook & pen, spiritual reading (small set of scriptures), map of your area, tiny camping saw, walkie talkie, LAMINATED COPIES OF BIRTH CERTIFICATES, DRIVER LICENSES, SOCIAL SECURITY OR MEDICARE CARDS, MEDICAL INSURANCE CARDS.
I'm sure our kits aren't perfect.
I hope I never have to find out if they are
or not!
The point is, have something ready that
you can grab in case of a need to evacuate.
(If you can't afford to do it all right now, just start with a day's worth of food
& add to your kits as you can)
(If you can't afford to do it all right now, just start with a day's worth of food
& add to your kits as you can)
By the way, in 1969, my mother & I survived the category 5 Hurricane Camille--one of only 3 storms of this severity to hit the U.S. in the 20th century. I remember (as a little girl) standing in line for drinking water. The Red Cross was a great help to us.
This is very important post on preparation. Thanks for sharing this.
ReplyDeleteThe people of Japan are in my thoughts and prayers during this crisis. The proportions of this tragedy are unimaginable, I find it difficult to speak about.
Living in Utah...where the big earthquake is gonna happen sooner or later...we have 48 hour kits for every member of my family. I did go through them and update a few things after Japan was hit. My heart goes out to all those who are suffering...they are, of course, in my families prayers.
ReplyDeleteYep, it is so sad what is happening around the world and it's good to be prepared and how comforting to know that the rest of the world does care, so I commend you on the knowledge that you give to others regarding 'in case of emergency' xx
ReplyDeleteThis is such a smart idea! I really need to work on getting something like this together for my family. The earthquake in Japan just proves that you never know when something like that will happen! Thanks so much for the reminder to be prepared!
ReplyDeleteWow, I'm impressed with how you have worked out this backpack system! By the way, my father was a builder and went south to work after Hurricane Camille. I was 2 weeks old, and my parents packed up and we all stayed in a motel for 6 weeks. My mom still talks about what a difficult time that was!
ReplyDeleteoh my gosh...this is a huge reminder of how UNPREPARED we are. Seriously....if we even got so much as "drifted in" for very long, we could be stuck for days and not be able to get out. Gotta have some staples at least.
ReplyDeletewe are a work in progress for sure....I am trying to "teach" my hubby the importance of preparedness.
You are prepared girl. I hope you never have to use it. I had a kit at work when I worked near the World Trade Center but not one at home.
ReplyDeleteIn May 2007 we survived an EF5 tornado. It was amazing that the month before our extension office put together a night to come and bring a bag, they showed you what you needed and had businesses donate merchandise. We put together our bag, added a few other items of our picking and I put it in our basement and didn't give it another thought until that night and we had what was on our back and that bag. Better to be prepared and never need it. We now have a tote with essentials and a couple of bags in it. And I agree the Red Cross was a godsend for two days.
ReplyDeleteAmen! We are in earthquake country, so we absolutely have a plan and are prepared. Thanks for the tip on reading the dates on the mre's.
ReplyDeleteWoW you are very prepared... AWESOME...
ReplyDelete