Making an emergency plan, part 1

Making an emergency plan may be the most overwhelming part of emergency preparedness. A lot of people would vote for food storage, and there is some reason for that, but trying to think of all the horrible things that can happen, and what you would need to do, and what you need to get to do it, is a challenge.

The good news is that there ends up being a lot of overlap between the different emergencies. It's like with the 72-hour kit; whether you are taking it to a Red Cross shelter, or using it at a motel when car trouble strands you in town, or pulling out the flashlights and ready-to-eat foods because power has gone out, it still helps that you have all of those supplies gathered together.

That being said, it is helpful to go over potential emergencies beforehand, because there are specifics where knowing is helpful. If you live near the coast, an earthquake can lead to a tsunami, and you need to know to move to high ground quickly. You also need to know what to do during an earthquake, because not incurring fatal injuries is important to your long-term strategy.

One thing that I love about my house, and means that I will probably never move, is that it is in a good location for preparedness purposes. We are not in a flood plain, or underneath hills for mudslides. We are not near an ocean or a river where a tsunami or a seiche is likely. We are not very close to forests, so a wildfire is unlikely, though not impossible. The power grid is primarily underground, so even during the worst storms we tend to keep power. Those are all things that I value.

We are, of course, at great risk for earthquakes, we can't rule out toxic spills, and we are not in a high tornado area, but freak things happen, as we saw in Aumsville. House fires can happen to anyone, and they can spread. Also, for all the scary things that we are far away from, we are not particularly far from crime (which might be a good reason for moving), and there can always be the plane falling out of the sky, or car crashing into the living room, or something like that. Also, we may keep power in an ice storm, but we still will end up housebound. Oh, and plague! There could always be a plague.

So this is your moment to think about the negative, and if you need to give off a little scream, then do it, and then reel your common sense back in, and focus on the most important. For us, it is the earthquake, followed by winter storms.

I have posts on earthquakes, and there will be more, but that everyone knows what to do in an earthquake, and after, and that we take basic steps for securing the house, like bolting heavy bookcases to the wall, makes sense as our main priority. Having a plan for getting out in a fire is a priority.

Looking at the others, okay, I need to think about a tornado, even though it's unlikely. We don't have a basement. We have a crawlspace that we do not have easy access too, so, do we all huddle in the shower stall, or is there a better spot? That's something to look at. Sure, a tsunami won't strike here, but sometimes I go to the beach, so I should know the basics of that.

The good thing with looking at your most likely problems is that they are also likely problems for your neighbors, employer, and local government. Does your workplace have a plan? Does your school have a plan? Finding these things out can be reassuring, or it can be the inspiration for them to create plans, which will then be reassuring after it is done.

You're not the only one thinking about this. There is information available, and you can look and consider, and go about your preparations in an orderly manner, starting with the most pressing. Here is some good reading:

http://www.fema.gov/
http://ocem.org/preparepage.cfm
http://www.providentliving.org/