Beans & LegumesPreparing an Emergency Evacuation Plan
There could be times when you will need to evacuate the area you live in. This includes disasters such as:
- Fires
- Flooding
- Gas Leaks
- Earthquakes
- Tornadoes
- Hurricanes
It is vitally important that you prepare for the possibility of evacuation. The terrible stories of Hurricane Katrina make it very clear that you should not rely solely on government or other entities for help. It is true that in most cases there will be help, but it is painfully obvious that this is not always the case.
Here are a few things you can do to prepare:
1. Make a family communication plan
Your plan should be well rehearsed by everyone in your family so that there is no question as to who to call and what to do. This can help you and your loved ones with coping in an emergency situation. This will also allow for a quick head count as some family members may be gone during a disaster.
For instance, your spouse could be at work and you may need to rely on them to help you and the other family members as they may have access to resources you may need.
There may be times when communication devices will not function correctly. If you have agreed on a meeting place, each person can feel safe when they have met in the proper place without having to worry about coordinating with others that they were not able to contact.
This place could be different depending on the emergency. If the emergency is a house fire, it could be just to meet by the mail box in front of your home. If you are required to evacuate the area, it could be to meet at the home of a relative or friend that lives in a safer area.
Keep 72-Hour-Kits for each member of the family in a safe place that is easily accessible in the case of an emergency. You may want to also keep these in your car. The kits should have everything they need to survive for 72 hours. Including food, water, shelter, sanitary supplies, medications, and clothing.
Don’t forget to include a good first-aid kit in your 72-Hour kit. Most people remember to store food, but neglect a good, pure water supply. Remember that you can live longer without food than you can without water.
4. Choose an out-of-area contact
There may be cases where there won’t be a practical place to stay, locally. You will want to maintain an out of state emergency contact so that you can make arrangements with them to help you during a disaster.
5. Make a map of your building’s floor-plan with routes to the nearest exit.
An easy map can be posted in the main areas of your home or building. Most people understand how to get out of a home quickly but a high rise building can be another thing all together. The disaster could happen while you are at work or at school. Don’t neglect the need to be familiar with alternative exits in your place of work. You may not be able to use the usual ones.
6. Understand the local road system, and plan different routes of evacuation.
There will likely be roads closed in an emergency in order to keep people from driving into the disaster area. This means you will probably need to use an alternate route out of the area. Make sure you are aware of at least three different ways out of your neighborhood or city.
7. Make sure you have light and communication devices handy.
The only way you will know which roads have been closed is by listening to the radio or some other media device. Many hand held devices include a navigation system, however, the power in these devises can be used up quickly. Also, the disaster could happen at night which means you will need to have access to light. I recommend a dynamo powered radio and light. (One that you can crank to charge.) These can range from the very powerful, to the simple. Dynamo power is useful as you will always have access to it. Some of these devices also have solar power which will make it easier to use during the day.
What ever the situation, make sure you are ready. Don’t wait until it’s too late!
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I am a veteran and I have been slowly getting ready for any type of Emergency. And I think ready nation for making the job very easy
July 25th, 2009 at 5:56 pmI think having some cash and/or a credit card in the grab and go is a good idea. For whatever reason you may not have your wallet. I have read stories of people evacuating due to fire quickly and having everything except cash and/or credit card and they had a very hard time because of that.
July 27th, 2009 at 11:27 amI have some travelers checks tucked away in my emergency supplies. Just in case of theft they can be replaced.
July 27th, 2009 at 11:42 amTravelers checks are a very good idea over keeping cash handy. I also keep a 72 hr kit at a relitives house a couple hrs from my home as well at a close friend of mine in a differant state incase I need to leave without being able to get my kit I have backups.
July 27th, 2009 at 11:49 amI too had not thought of keeping cash,cashier checks or credit card in 72 hr grab n go bag. I do have coins in all grab n go backpacks in case we have to use a pay phone. wonderful idea.
July 27th, 2009 at 6:09 pmI’m just starting to build my in-place and evacuation kits. At first it was a little overwhelming trying to think of all of the possible things I might need. Then I got some advice from dear old data: KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). So I took my meager budget and started with the basics.
Food – I got some 3600 calorie food bars.
Water – I got half a dozen of the water pouches, a water bottle and some purification tables.
Warmth – A mylar emergency sleeping bag and a set of old clothes, enough to layer depending on the weather.
I put all that into a bag and put it by the door. It’s not much but it’s a good start. As my budget allows I can implement some of the good ideas I’ve seen on this site.
July 27th, 2009 at 7:18 pmSurvival: Shelter in place, Cut and run for a temporary cituation, and cut and run during Civil unrest for an indefinate period in time. Over time build up your supplies to sustain you for all occasions. Parinoid? I don’t think so. If we haven’t looked at our current crisis and shuttered to think of the many possibilities that can occur, then, I guess we can trust our Federal Government to “bail us out”! I don’t think so! For two years I have been ordering survival supplies from ready nation in conjunction with collecting supplies locally. All of the comments posted are 100% correct. I have amassed a ninty day supply of everything from thirty year food tins,six year MRE’s, water filtration and all camping supplies and cold weather survival gear for a family of seven. WHEW! After that I will fish and hunt game for food. In conclusion we cannot be totally prepared for every thing so just prepare for the worst and pray for the best.
July 27th, 2009 at 10:41 pmI really look forward to your monthly mail. The information you supply, and the information supplied by your readers, helps me to get better prepared. Thanks
July 28th, 2009 at 6:14 amI believe that MRE’s are excellent, specially in the late Epidemic events that have shocked the world. I have been stocking water, 72hour kits, freeze food, radio, porta party kit, and many more. The dissadvantage is that, my purchase has to be delivered to my sister in Laws house in Tn., since I live in Puerto Rico USA. Otherwise, I am happy to at least be able to get them.
July 29th, 2009 at 3:07 pmGod Bless, Edward
Keep my “GO BAG” in my trunk. It is the best place for it as my car is never very far from me either at work or home. It is a medium sized ALICE pack, purchased for under $20 at a surplus store.
When deciding what to put in it, I wanted it to cover most contingencies, but not to exceed 30 pounds, as that is the most I want to carry for any distance. I also wanted to be able to leave it undisturbed for months or years without worrying about dampness, mildew, or rot.
I started with clothes. I use the layer approach, with a fleece pull over and a rain resistant nylon anorak to cover seasonal changes. I also have a set of Frog Tog rain wear, as there is nothing more miserable than being outdoors and wet. In the summer, when I wear shorts most of the time, I put a pair of long pants in the pack. A couple of pairs of socks and underwear, a wool watch cap, and some gloves round out the clothing. I vaccume pack it all (love my food saver)to keep it clean and dry, as well as making it more compact.
Food consists of some of the 3000 calorie bars, instant soup packets (a nice hot cup of soup can be world class comfort food in times of stress), protein bars, instant coffee packets, and Gaitoraide packets. All vaccume sealed, it all fits in one of the external pockets of the Alice Pack. Water will be via the water filter, the most expensive thing in the kit as one does not go cheap when it comes to water, and carried in a 1 qt. canteen that can be hung on my belt and has a cup and stove in the carrier (surplus, about $7.00).
Shelter is a universal fly cover of nylon. Chosen over a tent for it’s light weight and flexabelaty. Can make a variety of different kinds of shelters, or can be wrapped around like a blanket when building a shelter is not in the cards. A couple of space blankets rounds out the shelter needs.
Other items in the kit include a knife, saw, compass, esbit stove, fuel, first aid kit, 100′ para cord, work gloves, and a pocket survival tin (of my own making), which all fits in one of the external pockets of the Alice pack.
I put it all together for just over $200, of which more than half was for the water filter. The only thing it does not have is cash and a credit card, which is something I didn’t think of. I think I will go with a mix of cash and travelers checks to limit my cash liability in case of theft. Good idea picked up from this blog.
September 14th, 2009 at 8:24 am