Category: Survival/Emergency Preparedness

Before modern medicine, one of the number one causes of death was infection. We now have antibiotics. When stocking up on antibiotics, it is important to choose the right one. Many studies have shown Amoxicillin to be more effective than Penicillin. Amoxicillin also does not need to be taken as long as Penicillin making it a much better candidate for stockpiling since a stockpile will last longer.

The problem is that if you go to your local healthcare practitioner and tell him to give you a lifetime supply of Amoxicillin because you are prepping for the apocalypse, he/she will likely not only turn you down but may declare you mentally unstable. Even if you find a doctor that understands prepping, you will still have to deal with the outlandish cost of buying pharmaceuticals in bulk. When you need a solution for this, look to the fish. Fish antibiotics are available to anyone online for cheap. The neat thing is that they are identical to the human medication counterpart, and available in human doses.

Continue reading Stocking Up Your Supplies of Antibiotics

So now we’re going to look at the most needed survival tools and equipment. For those of us who want to have food and water to in preparation for a natural or man-made disaster and have the means to defend ourselves, we will run the risk of being called names we don’t like.

This is a sad and strange time that we are living in. In essence, we are going to be considered dangerous because we want to protect ourselves and family. Shame on you who think this is worth our government’s time.

Japanese Nuclear Disaster + Potassium Iodide Tablets
The potential for nuclear radiation poisoning from the nuclear power plants failing Japan continues to be pretty high. My friend who lives on the West Coast was expressing his concern yesterday and I e-mailed him some links to products on Amazon.com. Last night the products were available. Tonight the products are back ordered and not available for several months.

Continue reading Be sure to include Iodide Tablets and a Stove

Here is how to start – begin with a box! It’s entirely possible that you will someday be faced with an evacuation situation. When it happens, you need to be prepared. Don’t just think about it – do something – now! Evacuation preparation is not an all-or-nothing thing.

In a crisis, any preparation, even a minimal kit, would be far superior to having nothing to rely on. Begin with what you have and build on it. Your goal is security – not luxury – in a kit.

There are many container options to choose from when creating a 72-hour evacuation kit. But until you have the time and budget to make that selection, begin right now by going to the grocery store and obtaining a sturdy waxed produce box with “handle holes”.

An apple box with the lid that fits completely over the bottom so that there are double walled sides is a good example. This can be used as a makeshift kit container.

Continue reading How to start with your 72-hour emergency kit

If a life-threatening event forces you to leave your home, your preparations can help you endure with a minimum of discomfort and a maximum of confidence.

1. What’s the difference between a 72-hour kit and being prepared in my home?
2. Why 72 hours? Why not 54 hours or 95 hours or something else?
3. The government or The Red Cross will step in and help me. Why should I have a 72-hour emergency evacuation readiness kit?

What’s the difference between a 72-hour kit and being prepared in my home?

Being prepared for a disaster and having a 72-hour kit is not the same. You need to know the difference.

There is a lot of confusion nowadays about what it means to be prepared. Being prepared at home does not begin and end with a preparedness kit (or a 72-hour evacuation kit, as it can also be called), though having a preparedness kit is an important part of being prepared. To be prepared for a disaster you need to be ready to take care of yourself in your home and also away from your home, in case of an evacuation.

Continue reading 72-hour Emergency Evacuation Readiness

What exactly is a survival pack?  The two survival packs that we carry are designed to expedite your emergency preparations and get you on the road to your goal quickly.

The 72–hr pack is designed to ensure that you are self-sufficient for at least three days, either in your home or, in case of the need for evacuation, on the go. With the basic needs of clean water, food, light, and radio communication met, you rest assured that you will have these items available on a moments notice if you need them.

The one-month survival pack is designed to ensure that you are able to take care of your basic needs for one month, in case of a prolonged power outage or another event, that disrupts the normal flow of supplies into your area. With a water filter, one month of Alpine Aire survival food, wind-up flashlight and radio and a basic guide to emergency preparedness including checklists, you are well on your way to preparing to survive the emergencies of our times more comfortably.

Continue reading Survival Packages

Ever since I was a young child, I have had a strong desire to accomplish something that was very large. That accomplishment was hiking the Appalachian Trail, and one of the reasons why it was so dear to me was because the trail happened to be in my backyard.

As a matter of fact, I spent a lot of my youth walking around through the Appalachian Mountains and discovering all that there was to see. As I grew older, I began to realize that taking on the trail was something that I would eventually have to do.

Along the way, I took a little bit of a detour because I decided that I was going to get married and raise a family. At the time, I really didn’t think much about it but in later years I realized that this really put my entire plan of hiking the Appalachian Trail on hold.

The unfortunate thing is, I also tended to gain a little bit of weight and got out of shape during these years, which made it more difficult for me to realize the dream of hiking the trail as well.

It wasn’t until my retirement years that I finally began to come back to the thought that I would hike the trail from start to finish. After doing a little bit of research, however, I realized that doing it all in one shot was going to be a very difficult thing, indeed. There was something that I decided to do, however, and this was to piece together the trail in small, easier to manage sections.

After doing research on this, I was surprised by exactly how many people also did this as well. It would take me several years but I was able to do much more than I had ever thought possible by just hiking the trail in small increments, anywhere from a weekend up to a couple of weeks, depending upon the part of the trail that I was hiking.

Another benefit that I found to hiking the trail in this way is the fact that I was able to take it on during the better parts of the year so that the weather was always in my favor. This is something that I really appreciated, especially after working the majority of my life outdoors and finding it difficult to enjoy some of the more inclement weather that I would be up against.

Since the Appalachian Trail spans from Georgia to Maine, it was easy to find certain times of the year whatever you could hike almost any part of the trail, provided you planned in advance.

Although I have not touched all 2000 miles of the Appalachian Trail, I have touched many portions of the trail in almost every area along its length. Even though it would have been nice to hike it all the way from the beginning to the end, I do not regret the fact that I was unable to do so. In fact, I was probably able to enjoy the journey more and it is something that will stick with me for the rest of my life.

Mourning Silence

We live in a world that is very different from what it was just a few short years ago. As a matter of fact, many of us look fondly on a time whenever we were able to sit in silence and reflect on things about the day. For many of us, however, those days have long gone and now, it seems as if we are totally surrounded by noise that never stops. As a matter of fact, the problems that occur as a result of the noise pollution around us goes far beyond the fact that we may be mourning silence, it can actually affect us on a very personal level.

Noise pollution is an issue that is in the spotlight in some areas but in others, it seems to have faded into the background, much as the background noise has done. The simple fact of the matter is, however, too much noise can have an impact on our health and well-being. A good example of this is the fact that high levels of noise can cause problems, such as high blood pressure, tinnitus, hearing loss, difficulties with sleeping and higher stress levels. These are all things that we would do well without.

As far as the noise that is around us, this can often be a problem that is beyond our grasp as far as doing something about it. We may try to get away for a while, perhaps escaping on vacation and seeing if we can find some peace and quiet somewhere. What many of us find, however, is that there is still going to be some noise in these areas that is inescapable. Let me give you an example of this.

Not long ago, my wife and I were mourning silence and the fact that we live so close to the road that ran behind our house. We decided that we would spend a day in the Everglades, far from the hustle and bustle that tended to be such an issue for us. As I was enjoying the sun setting over the Everglades, my wife was pointing out the fact that planes were constantly flying overhead. Suddenly, my conception of being in a quiet area was shattered and although the scenery was beautiful, all I could hear were the engines that were above me.

If you are mourning silence for yourself and you are having a difficult time dealing with it, perhaps one of the best things that you could possibly do is to get to an area that is quieter, even if it is not something that could be considered quiet. Even taking a little bit of time on a daily basis to sit and quietly reflect can help to reduce your stress levels and take away a lot of the health issues that could be caused by this constant bombardment of noise to our ears. Make the effort to do it today, you would be surprised with what it is able to accomplish.

This year, as you make your New Year’s resolutions, the Federal Emergency Management Agency urges you to have a disaster plan and integrate smartphones into it.

Here are some preparedness tips:

• Know the hazards and risks in your area.
• Create an emergency information document by going to www.ready.gov  and downloading FEMA’s Family Emergency Plan.
• Know how to communicate with and find your loved ones when a disaster strikes.
• Discuss the types of disasters that are most likely to happen and pick a meeting place in case you can’t return home.

Continue reading Be prepared in the New Year

Emergency Preparedness For All Kids and Teens.
How should an emergency manager or any other emergency planner make sure that all children, also those with functional or access needs, temporary illnesses, or chronic conditions, are included in all aspects of emergency planning?

Emergency preparedness is included in a school curriculum, kids and teens are taught skills such as problem-solving, teamwork, creativity, leadership, and communication and even social studies practice tests include questions and solutions for real-world problems in regards to disaster preparedness. It allows generating awareness of emergency and feeling prepared.

Also, there is a toolkit “Emergency Preparedness For All Children” available at schools. This toolkit is providing child-focused emergency planning and offers useful response tools to be used by: Continue reading Are Your Kids Prepared For Emergencies?

Analyze the risks in your area. Assess the likelihood of a manmade disaster in your own neighborhood. As you become aware of the problems that could occur, the chance that you could be forced to evacuate your home will be brought more clearly into focus. When you combine these problems with the possibility of natural disasters or even terrorism, you’ll understand why you need to prepare an individual evacuation plan and kit.

The more detailed your research the better prepared you will be. Go out into your neighborhood to see what is there. What around your home could happen that could force you out? Look at businesses, such as a common gas station or paint store, with a different perspective. If that paint store caught fire, would toxic fumes engulf the whole area? Keep in mind this is planning, not panicking. It is simply having the foresight to assess a potential problem and deal with it!

The area that can directly affect you is usually within a five-mile radius of your home. (Of course, Mother Nature cannot be confined to an area.) Determine the proximity of freeways, railroads, and factories to your home. What kind of freight is shipped near you? What kinds of factories are there? Think of the specific problems they could cause. For example, are you aware that toxic materials are often transported by truck?

If a spill or leak occurs on a nearby highway, you could be evacuated. Railroads also carry substances that could be threatening. Are there tracks near your home? Are you in the flood path if a dam or levy should break? Would your geographical terrain ease or aggravate possible problems? Evaluating your neighborhood will help you appraise your danger zone. With these facts in mind, you should be able to analyze the perils that would have the greatest effect on you.

Isn’t preparing for a long-term scenario rather fanatical?

Not at all. I’m not suggesting that you become a fanatic. I’m suggesting that you look ahead at possibilities and deal with them in a sensible, reasonable manner. These are troubled times and uncertainty is everywhere. You, like the rest of us, may feel a nagging sense of urgency to get prepared. But prepared for what? What could possibly necessitate our needing a substantial supply of food?

There is a grocery store in every neighborhood, factories here, farms there, convenience stores on every corner. We turn the tap and fresh clean water is ours for the taking. Turn up the thermostat and we can toast in the middle of winter. Why do we need an extended supply of anything (except maybe chocolate chips and ice cream?) The answer? We don’t know. Many things could occur to make your storage necessary.

Two or three years without rain would have a devastating result nationally and even globally. Natural disasters (local or in distant places,) war, truckers’ strikes, drought, depression, terrorists, technological problems, etc. are all possibilities in our tumultuous world, and most could fairly effectively shut down the country or region. Or a more personal disaster could be the loss of a job for an extended period or a devastating illness. If we knew the future, it would be easy. But since we don’t know what we’re preparing for, the best idea is to prepare for the worst.

Being prepared covers a wide array of diverse situations, ranging from the life and death struggle of a worst-case scenario to the day to day effort to weather a serious financial setback. Each situation has distinct, defining parameters, yet certain elements have an effect on all situations. Here are a few of these essential elements.

Your first step is to spend a few minutes thinking about what area of preparedness you are most concerned about. Are you concerned about the possibility of a natural disaster leaving you stranded with no food or water or utilities?

Are you uneasy about the possibility that you’ll be evacuated from your home with only the clothes on your back? Do you worry about the economy and how to be sure you will always have food on your table? Have you considered the possibility that severe weather conditions or global disasters could result in severe food shortages?

Ponder your possibilities and try to gain as much insight and information as you can about what your options are and how you’d like to tackle them. (Check out the other pages on this website for valuable information.) Ideally, you’ll want to work towards being ready for any crisis. But don’t wait till you have the time and money to purchase every emergency preparedness product known to man before you start.

Continue reading Where do I start if I don’t know anything about being prepared?