Preparedness: A Concept of Life ~ Basic Preparedness Concepts

by Unknown

Earthquakes, floods, fires, lightning, crime, tornados, chemical spills, hurricanes, vehicle accidents, urban violence, food shortages, extreme temperatures, power outages, nuclear accidents.

How many of the above threaten your safety and that of your family's? A realistic analysis of the risks shows the answer to be more than we care to think about. In order to keep yourself and your family as safe as possible from harm and discomfort, you need to prepare for anything that might happen.

Does this mean you need to spend every extra nickel and every spare minute in preparation? Is this an end to quality time with your family? The answer is...No. Preparedness doesn't need to be an all- consuming task. And the reason for this is that most of the preparation for one risk will work for another.

For example, no matter what calamity occurs, you'll always need the basics of water, shelter, fire (heat/cooking), first-aid, clothing, and food. If you take a look at past disasters, you'll find that people are always in need of the same things: fresh water to drink, a place to stay, medical treatment, something to eat, etc. If everyone took the time and spent a little money putting away the basics, there would be a lot less people looking for handouts from the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and various governments.

Okay, now that you know most preparations will get you ready for most things, where do you start? At the beginning, of course. The very first thing you need to do is a risk analysis of the area where you live and work, as well as for everyone in your family. School can be considered work for those getting an education.

Start with the big three: Vehicle accidents; Fire; Crime.

Odds are that you'll be affected by one of these before anything else. What comes next on the risk list depends on where you are. The key is to be realistic. If you are trying to prepare for foreign invasion, but don't have any auto insurance, you're not being realistic.

Once you've done your risk analysis, you can move into the planning phase. Keeping the possible risks in mind, devise a plan to accommodate any contingency. These contingencies will outline where you and your family are when the disaster strikes.

If everyone is together, it's just a matter of getting your supplies and staying safe. If the family (for the purpose of this article, "family" can mean a close group of friends) is not together, communication becomes very important. Knowing where someone is and that they're safe will relieve vast amounts of stress during an emergency.

There are several forms of communication that you should consider.

They are, but not limited to, landline telephone, pager, cellular telephone, and two-way radio. Landline telephone is the same phone we use everyday, it's connected to the phone company by wires.

During a crisis, you may not be able to call anyone in the affected area due to blocked lines, but you'll most likely be able to call outside of the area. Therefore, you should have a distant family member or close friend act as a contact point. This way, everyone can call the contact person and leave messages about their well- being.

Pagers have become extremely cheap, lately, making them quite affordable. In addition to staying in touch during normal times, through the use of simple codes, you can relay information to each other. Unless the disaster is quite severe, the paging transmitters should still be working as long as you can get an open phone line.

The cost of having a cellular phone has also come down to a level where they're affordable. Especially if you get a package designed for emergency use only and don't use it except when necessary.

Cellular phones connect into the landline phone circuits at the cell sites and are subject to the same disruption as landlines. However, having a cellular phone to use when you are stranded, or caught in a minor emergency, is invaluable.

If you noticed, the above three forms of communication all have one thing in common. Every one of them needs to go through a phone company to work. This leaves you quite dependent on someone else.

Using a two-way radio precludes having to rely on a "middle man." However, there is one drawback; you are limited by the range of the transmission. For more information and a look at what's available, visit a radio-electronics shop. If they don't know the answers, they should be able to point you in the right direction.

Another part of your plan that could fall under communication is called the meeting place. You should have at least one meeting place, and it's location should be a safe place right outside your home. If a fire were to break out while everyone is sleeping, chances are that not everyone will use the same escape path. In order to know who got out okay, assign a point outside your home, a neighbor's tree, for example, where everyone will meet after escaping. This allows for rapid accountability.

The next part of your plan should outline what people should do if they are separated from the rest during a disaster. What should they do? Where should they go? Who should they call? Planning this out beforehand will save a lot of aggravation and prevent stress later.

Other parts of the plan should include things like, who'll pick up the kids from school? If someone is at home, should they stay there?

If they leave home, what should they do first, if possible? Go through your risk analysis list and discuss all the "what-ifs" that you can think of.

After you've completed the communication and what-to-do planning, the next step is to gather your emergency supplies. What do you include in your supplies and gear? First, start with the basics: water, shelter, fire, first-aid, and food. How much and what quality to buy depends on your budget. If you can afford it (and congratulations if you can), buy everything at once and of the best quality there is. Otherwise, think frugal. The water filter can be one that works well but isn't rated for long term use. The tent used for shelter can be a budget-buy on sale. And so forth.

After the basic home supplies are acquired, do the same for each vehicle. Keep in mind that the temperatures in a vehicle can be very hot or very cold, depending on the season, and buy your supplies accordingly. If your entire family spends most of it's time on the road, you might be better off to make up the vehicle kits first as these can also be used at home. Since only you know your situation, only you can decide the best course of action.
After the basic supplies and gear are acquired, start adding the extra stuff that will make surviving more comfortable. Things like flashlights, compasses, maps, tools, hygiene stuff, etc. Anything that will increase your comfort level will make surviving the disaster more bearable.

After your plans have been laid, conduct drills and practice sessions to make sure everyone knows what is expected of them and what they need to do. Once an emergency occurs, the way you were trained and how you practiced will be the way you and your family do it for real. Consider this when trying to decide whether or not to take a shortcut during a practice or training session.

There are many ways of going about your preparedness plans and actions. Don't forget to include things like getting insurance for your home and vehicles, and medical insurance for every family member.

When putting together your supplies, try to think of what you'll need to do in order to survive. Camping trips, drills, and practice sessions can help identify those items you might have forgotten but will need.

CIVIL & URBAN UNREST
• Be aware by recognizing danger. Have communication such as a radio, CB, or scanner. Use your senses. Panic spreads fast so when you feel threatened like your hair standing on end and the adrenalin working. Take action. Fight down the panic and stay calm.
• Get away-stay out of harm's way. Avoid trouble areas and/or dangerous parts of cities. Move away from dangerous cities.
• Avoid confrontation and try go around potential problems. Have an escape route that you have selected ahead of time. Remember, "Those who live by the sword, die by the sword." You might end up the target of a person's built up anger even though you are not a part of the problem.
• Act like the natives. Try to blend in so you don't attract attention. Be careful of what you wear. Be aware of your surroundings.
• Hide equipment/supplies away from your home. Have a retreat or place where you can escape to as a safe haven. As governments get more totalitarian they make the citizens outlaws by banning things like gun or gold. Bury things or have them hidden away.
• Learn to defend yourself. Choose an art that is compatible to your beliefs such as karate, aikido, mace, pepper spray, or shooting. If you face trouble head on, you should resist with everything possible in a life or death situation.
• Don't get involved in mobs or mob behavior. They become mindless and objectivity is lost.
• Crushed in a crowd? Self preservation is the key. Try to ride it out like a buoy in the sea. If caught in a crowd surge, stay away from anything solid like a wall, barrier, or pillar. Keep hands out of pockets and loosen tie.

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