Becoming better prepared for emergencies.

[nnnnnate]

In the 'Rona thread I alluded to making a list of things I intended to improve on for emergencies. This is in response to both the current pandemic as well as the earthquake. There are a couple things I can easily mark off that list and I thought I might ask here if people had some suggestions for those items but also figured it might be a good place to talk about things you guys have been thinking about that I might not have been and we can perhaps crowd source some info.

The first couple things I wrote down were an emergency radio and some lights.

For the radio I was thinking a hand crank type that might also run off batteries. After the earthquake the first thing I tried to do was get to a radio. My computers at the office were offline due to a power outage so I went to my cell phone and got a feed up from there. Thats kind of ridiculous so I want a OTA radio and found this guy which has good reviews and seems reasonably priced.

I've already got a few flashlights and some headlamps but for this line item I was thinking more along the lines of bigger lights that could light up a whole room or area. Again, amazon found me this that also has good reviews.

I haven't ordered either of those but am ready to pull the trigger. If you have something similar that has worked out well I'd love to know about it.

 

[Spork]

For a radio I've got a Baofeng 8w with the longer antenna, I listen to the radio more than any HAM stuff on it (just not cool enough yet for Ham). If it's charged it will last a few days.

For flashlights, I'm doing the more is more and I've got piles of these https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077P47TF1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 great light output, single AA battery and if the kids wander off and loose one I'm out $3. I've got a rechargeable flood light and duration isn't there, typically it's dead in about 2 hours, not sure if the ones you linked are better but it's something to watch.

 

[N-Smooth]

My bro has some lights like that. I've used them when we were night fishing and they're pretty cool. I would guess they only last a handful of hours but it's still better than nothing for sure.

My wife ordered a hand crank radio the day of the earthquake lol.

One thing that I realized in all of this is that our generator we use for our camp trailer is super important. I went and filled a few gas cans in case we ever have to use it. In fact I realized the trailer itself is a pretty cool resource if the power goes out. We can hang out in there and the heater will run off propane (I have extra propane cylinders too) and the battery. If we need a/c we can use the generator but otherwise it'll be used to keep our fridge and/or deep freezer going.

An area I know we are behind on is water. We have some cases of water bottles and some 1 gallon jugs but that's not nearly enough.

 

[Kevin B.]

I've got dual band mobile and HT units, don't need the hand crank thingy. After the earthquake I decided I wanted to bring some 12v power into the house so I bought a good sized inverter, gonna set it up with the marine battery so the kids can charge laptops and such during the next apocalypse. I've got a bunch of flashlights and lamps and such, my strategy there is rechargeable 18650 cells. I've got a couple boxes of emergency candles stashed as well.

We've got a fair bit of food and water socked away, just basic food storage stuff and a little bit of packable dehydrated stuff. We don't drink the tap water out here so I've normally got between 15-30 gallons of drinking water on hand depending on how long it's been since we've been to the grocery. Plus we can always boil, and I've got a couple of ways to purify/filter bad water too. I keep at least one big propane cylinder topped off at all times in case of emergency apocalypse bbq, and I've got my white gas Dragonfly in a pinch and I think a dual fuel Coleman collecting dust somewhere - I probably ought to break that out and make sure the seals and such are still good.

Where I'm lacking is power generation. Everything comes down to the alternators on the trucks when it comes to that. I'd like to get a couple good sized solar panels, and maybe a small gennie. In the meantime I'll trade Nate water for power.

 

[N-Smooth]

Where I'm lacking is power generation. Everything comes down to the alternators on the trucks when it comes to that. I'd like to get a couple good sized solar panels, and maybe a small gennie. In the meantime I'll trade Nate water for power.

My BIL went to HF the day after the earthquake because he wanted to buy a generator. He said he was in a line of 10-12 people and every single one of them was buying a generator lol

 

[Kevin B.]

My first aid kits are lame too. I need to invest a little time and money in some functional emergency kits instead of the collection of bandaids I have now.

 

[nnnnnate]

Are the ham radios capable of getting a radio station signal? I'm talking like KSL or something along those lines. Thats what I turned on when I wanted a radio after the quake. Having ham is also useful (which I've got) but I hadn't considered a radio for person to person communication.

I had a bunch of money I was going to lose in a medical fund (can't think of the name right now) so I ended up buying a first aid kit from outer limit supply probably 5 years ago. It rides in my cruiser drawers and is pretty comprehensive. I'm sure you could build one for MUCH less money but I am also really pleased with what I bought.

 

[Kevin B.]

Are the ham radios capable of getting a radio station signal? I'm talking like KSL or something along those lines. Thats what I turned on when I wanted a radio after the quake. Having ham is also useful (which I've got) but I hadn't considered a radio for person to person communication.

The Baofeng will pick up FM frequencies.

 

[Tonkaman]

My first thought after the earthquake was water storage. That was compounded by the fact that bottled water was gone in all the stores. Luckily water didn’t get disrupted, but if it had I would have been screwed!

While your motivated to spend, go buy some long term storage good items. That’s something most of us don’t actually have, but always think they should do some day. Buy it, stash it, forget about it.

This is also a great excuse to spend money on camping gear! Camping gear is essentially just emergency gear that we do practice drills with! Seriously think about it, you have a way to cook, stay sheltered, and stay warm.

 

[SnwMnkys]

I think people concentrate too much on storing a shit load of water. Go buy a good quality filter system with a couple replacement filters and some water storage containers. Ive never seen any major lakes or rivers here completely dry up that theres not a source of water to pull from in a real emergency situation. If your above drinking filtered lake water then you probably arent capable of surviving the other things youll have to do when things really go sideways.

Im not saying dont stock up for a week supply of bottled water for short term emergencies. But the way it was flying off the shelves youd think the utilities were shutting down permanently.

 

[4x4_Welder]

I have a Cat S61 phone, it has an FM radio and huge battery, plus that thermal camera bit is a nice feature.
I'm also working on a (eventually) solar powered low water consumption growing system, so should be good to make my own fresh food year round.
I'd love to have a stash of bottled water, but my kids destroy them way too quick. It's the same damn stuff they can pour out of the Brita pitcher, but no they need to waste a single use bottle for a drink.

 

[Houndoc]

Water is my main concern as well, especially with horses to keep hydrated as well.
Looked last year into 300-500 gallon tanks then kind of forgot about it.
Need to get back on it.

 

[mesha]

My first aid kits are lame too. I need to invest a little time and money in some functional emergency kits instead of the collection of bandaids I have now.

A few years ago I talked to a paramedic friend about my first aid situation. I asked him if he would help me build a first aid kit that would be comprehensive, but not over the top. All of the bandages look basically the same to me. So I needed some help . He was excited to help. We ended up trading some welding for the kit. It is the size of a small duffel bag and I love having it along. I do need to check it out and look for things that have expired.
I guess what I am saying is find someone that knows more than you and get their help. Most people I know love to share what they are passionate about and it might lead to a long term learning relationship to lean on when you need it.

 

[Tonkaman]

One thing I’ve noticed about most first aid kits is that they are either just for scrapes and boo boos, or trauma kits. It’s hard to get a kit that belongs in the middle, or covers both ends of that spectrum without making it yourself.

That being said I made a super awesome first aid kit geared toward wilderness first aid. I had such a comprehensive list of items for serious injuries that I completely forgot to put in the simple stuff like small bandaids! It was embarrassing the first time I pulled out my big red bag, pulled everything out, then had to go ask someone else for a bandaid ha ha

 

[Kevin B.]

I guess what I am saying is find someone that knows more than you and get their help.

This is awesome advice. My old man is an EMT and RN, and I have a little bit of first aid/first response knowledge. I just need to make the time to sit down with him and make a list.

 

[mbryson]

A few years ago I talked to a paramedic friend about my first aid situation. I asked him if he would help me build a first aid kit that would be comprehensive, but not over the top. All of the bandages look basically the same to me. So I needed some help . He was excited to help. We ended up trading some welding for the kit. It is the size of a small duffel bag and I love having it along. I do need to check it out and look for things that have expired.
I guess what I am saying is find someone that knows more than you and get their help. Most people I know love to share what they are passionate about and it might lead to a long term learning relationship to lean on when you need it.

@mesha

What are your thoughts on this kit? I'd be interested in something similar. Maybe even a https://www.nols.edu/en/coursefinder/session_search/wilderness-medicine/ type course if there's something available out there? We could lean on U4 to put something together if that helps?

 

[mesha]

@mesha

What are your thoughts on this kit? I'd be interested in something similar. Maybe even a https://www.nols.edu/en/coursefinder/session_search/wilderness-medicine/ type course if there's something available out there? We could lean on U4 to put something together if that helps?

A course would be awesome. One of my friends used to teach wilderness first responder and wilderness first aid courses. I should reach out a see if he still does.

I cannot see the kit you a talking about.