Building Your Kit, Part 2

Building Your Kit, Part 2

A 7- part series on disaster preparedness

disasterprep.dave@gmail.com

Our winter storms are hopefully, a bygone memory for this season. Some of us experienced power outages, some were inconvenienced for a day or two due to flooding and a landslide here and there caused us some travel frustration a few times. All things considered, our winter was pretty mild and we breezed through in fine style. Even though our winter wasn’t a harsh as some places across the country, the need to prepare is still very valid.

“How do I get started building my kit?” Truly some folks are simply overwhelmed by the task.

“What do I buy? How much do I need? Where do I store my kit?” are all questions commonly asked. Each week for seven weeks I will create a list of items to buy and things to do. After seven weeks, if you follow the steps, you will have created a kit capable of getting you through the first three days of most disasters. My recommendation is that you keep building on your own until you have a minimum of 14 days’ supplies, but this is a great start.

Week Two shopping list: 1. Manual can opener.

2. First aid kit. Should start with gauze and bandages, tweezers, scissors and antiseptic ointment.

Add some hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, suture kit, the list is endless.

3. Airtight bags, storage containers and a permanent marker. I find that both two gallon and five gallon buckets with lids are ideal for storage. Use the marker to list the contents and the date.

4. Extra prescription medications, eyeglasses and contact lens solutions.

Collaborate with your doctor on this one. He (or she) will probably be sympathetic once you explain why you need extras. Your insurance provider may not be as sympathetic, but you might work with your pharmacy on this one.

5. Bring home another gallon of water.

6. Non-perishable food.

Start with a few cans of meat, fruits, some peanut butter and crackers. Try to stick with food that you are accustomed to eating.

7. Plastic sheeting, tarp and duct tape.

Tips for Week Two: 1. Collect your supplies in one place. When the lights are out and confusion reigns, it is just simpler when your kit is together.

2. Consider having two kits. One at home and one in your car. Not everyone is at home when disaster strikes. There is a multitude of kits on the market, but it is still best to build your own.

3. Rotate your stock of food, water, medicines and batteries every six months to ensure freshness.

As always send your questions and comments to disasterprep.dave@gmail.c om. Previous columns are on my blog at www.disasterprepdave. blogspot.com.

Dave Robinson is the Postmaster in Bandon, Oregon, and the author of “ Disaster Prep For The Rest Of Us.”

By Dave Robinson