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New York - Do you have your Shelter-In-Place Kit Ready?

It's not a good day to live in New York as Winter Storm Juno begins to make its power felt.  The predictions are for this to be the worst snowstorm on record for New York City.  New Yorkers may see two feet of snow or more. The mayor says ,"Prepare for the worst."  

We have begun to get emails that East Coast companies are closing down and don't expect to be open tomorrow.

Blizzard conditions are expected and this means people will have to shelter in place in their homes (hopefully that is where most New Yorkers will be).  They will also need to be prepared for power disruptions.  This is a good time to make sure that one has their shelter-in-place emergency kit ready.

Such shelter-in-place kits should include all the basic survival supplies necessary to sustain life and comfort for at least 72 hours.  When a severe winter strom hits, it can take a few days to get things back to normal.  

One never knows if they will have the time to fully prepare in the moment for such weather events, so being prepared in advance with a shelter-in-place kit and supplies is the only way to be sure to be secure in this unsure world in which we live.

New York, we feel for you as it could be any of us next.  From Chicago... Be secure and safe New York!

 Over 700,000 lives secured. Is Your Life Secure?

 Every Life Secure  

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Boston Shelter-In-Place - What Do We Learn?

Always be ready to Shelter In Place (SIP).  It's a basic emergency preparedness lesson.  No one in Boston could have anticipated just a few days ago that parts of the city would be in a government ordered Shelter-In-Place situation because of a manhunt for the Boston Marathon terrorist.  None of us can be sure when we might have to do the same for similar or very different reasons.

Here are some good resources to learn the basics of how to Shelter In Place (SIP) in an emergency:

http://www.nationalterroralert.com/shelterinplace/

http://emergency.cdc.gov/preparedness/shelter/

http://www.ready.gov/shelter

http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/shelterinplace.html

Always be prepared to GO (evacuate) or STAY (Shelter-In-Place).  Be secure EITHER WAY.

Over 560,000 lives secured. Is yours?

Every Life Secure

 

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The Marathon Bombing: Gunfights, Blasts and a Manhunt Shut Down Boston

Several communities told to 'shelter in place'

One Boston Marathon suspect believed dead, another subject of massive manhunt

Boston transit shut down, nearly 400,000 sheltering in place amid terror hunt

Suspect 1 Dead in Boston Bombing -- City Is A Warzone

Hurricane Sandy Says it Again, "Disasters Are Not Going Away" - Prepare Now

Even as a follow-on Nor'easter is on its way, the message from Hurricane Sandy is clear... There will be disasters, they will be disastrous, and your neighborhood can be hit, so prepare now.  Everyone needs to prepare to evacuate or to shelter in place for at least three days after a disaster.  You can see from Sandy, three days is a minimum.

Get your emergency kit now.  I can tell you, we are seeing a great surge in orders as many have gotten the reminder message.

Every Life Secure... Is Yours?^TM -- Over 500,000 Lives Secured and counting.

 

LifeSecure: Recognized as a Top 10 Vendor of Emergency Kits to the U.S. Government

LifeSecure has been recognized by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) as one of the top 10 vendors of emergency kits to the U.S. Government. We are proud to be a certified U.S. government vendor through the GSA contract program and to be helping the U.S. Government make "Every Life Secure".

Over the past several years we have supplied emergency kits to many federal, state, county and local government agencies including:

FBI
FEMA
Federal Bureau of Prisons
GSA
HUD
IRS
Tennessee Valley Authority
The Library of Congress
U. S. AID
U.S. Air Force
U.S. Army
U.S. Army National Guard
U.S. Attorney’s Office
U.S. Bankruptcy Courts
U.S. Coast Guard
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Department of Agriculture
U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Department Of Defense
U.S. Department of Education
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. Department of Justice
U.S. Department of Labor
U.S. Department of State
U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Department of the Treasury
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
U.S. Embassies – Asia/Europe/Caribbean/Africa/South America
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Federal Reserve Bank
U.S. General Services Administration
U.S. National Park Service
U.S. Navy
U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
U.S. Office of Emergency Response and Recovery
U.S. Park Police
U.S. Postal Service – Inspector General
U.S. Social Security Administration
U.S. Transportation Safety Administration
Numerous state, county, and municipal government agencies including those from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington, Washington D.C., Wisconsin, Wyoming

Just as all of these agencies trust us to help them be secure, we are confident that we can help you prepare for any emergency or disaster.

Every Life Secure - 490,000 lives secured and counting.

 

 

FEMA Urging Preparedness As Hurricane Irene Approaches

As the East Coast braces for a potential Category 4 Hurricane Irene, FEMA urges preparation for evacation and shelter in place.  Don't wait until the storm surge and damaging winds hit.  Prepare now if you live on the East Coast.

If you live elsewhere, think of this as one more reminder of the importance to be prepared at any time for any emergency or disaster.

Every Life Secure - Over 440,000 lives secured and counting.

You Don't Have to Be A Survivalist to Be A Survivor

It's true -- you don't have to be a "survivalist" to be a "survivor."  I'm a "survivor" of many disasters, but I'm not a "survivalist."  Though I have learned much from those who are self-identified survivalists and have great respect for their knowledge and skills, I believe all of us as "regular people" can take basic steps that allow us to be a survivor in case of a severe emergency or disaster.

To increase your chances of being a disaster survivor you can:

1) Learn about what to do in various emergency or disaster scenarios.  All of us can identify various kinds of disasters or emergencies that are common to where we live and learn about how to appropriately respond to them.  For example, I live in Illinois and as such should know the basics of what to do in case of earthquakes, tornadoes, blizzards, chemical spills or explosions (freight trains come within a mile of my home), nuclear accidents (we have 11 nuclear reactors in Illinois), and floods.

Such knowledge is readily available on the web (from this emergency preparedness blog among other sources), in books, in pamphlets, from local emergency responders, etc.  You don't need to become an expert in emergency response to learn and remember such basics "Drop, Cover, Hold On" in an earthquake, "get out of your car and into a ditch" in a tornado, or  "have a 72 hour emergency kit in case you have to evacuate or shelter-in-place" in any number of disaster scenarios.

I used to worry about trying to memorize and keep in mind the "10 bullet points for how to respond to each type of disaster".  I have come to believe that one can get and retain most of the "survivor knowledge" they will really need by just occasionally learning about these events and thinking about the key things to do and not do.  A lot of it comes down to common sense once you learn some of the basic principles of response.

When it comes to knowledge of how to respond, you don't have to be a trained survivalist to survive a disaster.

2) Have an emergency kit and emergency supplies.  As I share constantly in this blog and as the U.S. Government has told us for years now, everyone should have an emergency kit and adequate supplies to last for at least 72 hours (3 days) on their own after a disaster.  Hurricane Katrina taught us that even in America, you can go hungry and be thirsty if you are not prepared to meet your own needs after a catastrophic disaster.

I personally am prepared to support my family's basic needs for much longer than 72 hours, but this minimum is a good place to start.  For relatively little money you can either build your own emergency kit or buy an emergency kit that will meet your basic needs.  Remember, its about "sustaining life" not "sustaining lifestyle" for those few days after a disaster.  Your absolute survival essentials can be fit into one backpack.  That same backpack of supplies can be used to help you evacuate or shelter-in-place.

You don't have to own the ultimate survival knife in order to survive most disasters and emergencies. I love cool survival gadgets as much as the next guy, but basic supplies will do for most scenarios.  Any regular person can obtain an emergency kit that may not contain all the high-end specialized gear a trained survivalist may desire, but that will work just fine to help you be a survivor in a disaster.

3) Have a basic plan of how to evacuate or shelter-in-place.  If you have the basic knowledge of how to survive a given catastrophic event, and you have the supplies to meet your basic needs for a period of time, you can top that off by thinking through your emergency plan. 

The appropriate response to most catastrophic disasters will require you to do one of two things to avoid harm or to deal with the event's aftermath: evacuate of shelter-in-place.  If you have to evacuate, you'll need to know how you will gather family members, and where you will go before you actually have to leave.  Evacuation can happen in a real hurry in some scenarios and the time for preparation is over when the time for action has arrived.  Plan in advance.

Shelter-in-place plans also require some forethought.  Thinking through your plans will help you better ensure that you have the right emergency supplies in place to respond to an emergency at a moments notice. 

As in other aspects of emergency preparation, your plans don't have to be elaborate.  SEAL Team Six level planning and practice is not necessary.  Just think through the basics and make sure that all family members or colleagues in the workplace know what the plan is.

Following these basic approaches to emergency preparedness will allow you to survive most of what might come at you in this life in the way of emergencies or disasters.  Don't be intimidated by the emergency preparedness process.  You don't need to be a survivalist to be a survivor.

Every Life Secure

How Do I Survive a "SuperStorm"?

How do I survive a "superstorm"?  This is the question many are asking in the wake of the U.S. Geological Survey release of what it calls its "ARkStorm Scenario" in which it predicts that California could suffer devastating storms that could dump up to 10 feet of water over 40 days, flood one fourth of the homes in the state, and cause over $300 Billion in damage.

Though there is no specific answer as to how to survive such a superstorm in California or elsewhere, the truth is that there are simple steps that everyone can take to be prepared for such a disaster.  In the most basic sense, under any severe flooding scenario, there are two possible ways that one might be forced to respond in order to survive.  They may either be forced to evacuate their homes or they may be forced to shelter-in-place (hunker down and stay put).

My own personal experience is one of having to shelter-in-place for about two weeks without the benefit of running water, electricity, or even the availability of food beyond what was in the house.  This came, as I have described in another blog post, after a major typhoon and its accompanying destruction.  I have also lived through shorter periods of sheltering-in-place caused by significant flooding that essentially shut down travel for several days.

One may prepare to either evacuate or shelter-in-place in very similar ways.  The preparation for one event is the subset of the preparation for the other.  By this I mean that one might prepare supplies for up to two weeks or more if they have to shelter-in-place in their homes with no water, electricity, and additional food or other essentials.  Then they might have a portable kit of supplies that would sustain the basic necessities of life for up to three days (72 hours) should they have to evacuate.  The portable kit can be the source of some of the supplies necessary for sheltering-in-place.

In this way, one is covered whether they need to stay put or they need to get out.  It is difficult to practically carry more than three days of supplies on your person.  If you are able to take a vehicle in your evacuation you can always add extras, but one should be prepared to evacuate on foot and survive outside during that time for up to three days.

People are gaining in their understanding of the need to prepare to meet their own needs for 3 days or more as they are increasingly aware that no government agency is prepared to care for everyone's needs during or immediately after a devasting event such as the predicted California SuperStorm.

Visit us at www.LifeSecure.com for emergency solutions that meet the need to prepare for either evacuation or to shelter-in-place.  If you haven't already done so please make the effort now to make a plan and get the emergency kits and supplies you need to survive in any emergency or disaster.

The bottom line is the best way to survive a California Superstorm is to prepare to care for your own essential survival needs.

What Do You Do During a Tornado? How Can You Be Safe Wherever You Are?

LifeSecure.com

I awoke this morning to the news of another deadly tornado.  This one was in Oklahoma and claimed 8 lives and destroyed numerous buildings.  I wondered,"How many tornadoes hit in the U.S. every year?"  Answer: Over 1,200.

Then I wondered, "Which states get hit the most by tornadoes?" Answer: The Tornado Alley states of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and South Dakota.

How about, "Where have the most deadly tornadoes hit?" Answer: Mississippi, Missouri, Wisconsin, Indiana, Georgia, Oklahoma, Texas, Michigan, Kansas, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Maryland.

The deadliest tornado of all time killed 689 people along a 219 mile long track in 1925.

So, "Is there any state in the U.S. that is completely safe from tornadoes?" Answer:  No.  Sorry, every US state including Hawaii has experienced tornadoes.  So, no matter which state you live in, its important to know what to do during a tornado.

As I further researched Tornadoes, I saw a video clip of two storm chasers in Iowa taking a direct hit from a tornado while in their car last year (this same tornado killed 4 in a boy scout camp).  These guys stayed in their car and filmed the whole event. I thought, "Aren't you suppose to get out of the car and lie flat in a ditch?"

It's been a while since I last read about what to do in a tornado, so I decided it was time for review.  Hopefully you will find my tornado response review helpful.

Here is what the US Government (FEMA) tells us to do:

If you are in "a structure (e.g. residence, small building, school, nursing home, hospital, factory, shopping center, high-rise building) - Go to a pre-designated shelter area such as a safe room, basement, storm cellar, or the lowest building level. If there is no basement, go to the center of an interior room on the lowest level (closet, interior hallway) away from corners, windows, doors, and outside walls. Put as many walls as possible between you and the outside. Get under a sturdy table and use your arms to protect your head and neck. Do not open windows."

OK, so forget the old advice to open windows "so your house doesn't explode."

If you are in "a vehicle, trailer, or mobile home - Get out immediately and go to the lowest floor of a sturdy, nearby building or a storm shelter. Mobile homes, even if tied down, offer little protection from tornadoes.

No mention of getting out to "lie down in a ditch."  The guys on the video I saw were out of luck because there were no nearby buildings.

If you are "outside with no shelter - Lie flat in a nearby ditch or depression and cover your head with your hands. Be aware of the potential for flooding.

Do not get under an overpass or bridge. You are safer in a low, flat location.

Never try to outrun a tornado in urban or congested areas in a car or truck. Instead, leave the vehicle immediately for safe shelter.

Watch out for flying debris. Flying debris from tornadoes causes most fatalities and injuries."

OK, so there is my "lie in a ditch" advice.  But I'm still not clear on if you are out in the open with no chance to get to a building, do you stay inside the car or jump out and lie in a ditch?  ...Ah, here we go.  The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) has the answer:

"On the Road

The least desirable place to be during a tornado is in a motor vehicle. Cars, buses, and trucks are easily tossed by tornado winds.

DO NOT TRY TO OUTRUN A TORNADO IN YOUR CAR. If you see a tornado, stop your vehicle and get out. Do not get under your vehicle. Follow the directions for seeking shelter outdoors (see next section).

Outdoors

If you are caught outside during a tornado and there is no adequate shelter immediately available--

• Avoid areas with many trees.
• Avoid vehicles.
• Lie down flat in a gully, ditch, or low spot on the ground.
• Protect your head with an object or with your arms."

Got it!  Bottom line is don't stay in the car.  Get to a sturdy building (never go under an overpass for protection) or if this is not possible, do the "lie in a ditch" thing.

It's hard to remember exactly what to do in every disaster situation, but reading official recommendations periodically, talking with your family about them, and practicing things like where you would go and what you would do at home to protect yourself in case of a tornado are steps that take little effort but could help you and your family survive.

Here are some good links for further information and preparation.

Selected Information from Tornadoes - Are You Ready?: FEMA
During a Tornado - CDC (this had some good detailed information I did not find elsewhere)
Tornado Terms
Before a Tornado
During a Tornado
After a Tornado

If you have survived a tornado (it's one disaster not on my personal list) please email me your secure survivor story so we can share it with our readers: [email protected].  If you have read some other good tornado advice, please comment below.

EveryLifeSecure.com
An Emergency Preparedness Blog helping to make "Every Life Secure" in any emergency or disaster... at home, work, school, or on-the-go.

LifeSecure.com
An Emergency Preparedness website offering emergency kits and emergency supplies to help keep people secure in any emergency or disaster... at home, work, school or on-the-go.  Over 170,000 Lives Secured!

Blackouts - Candles Pose a Fire Hazard - Use Light Sticks

With blackouts making the headlines once again due to severe winter weather, it is a good time to be reminded of a very important blackout safety tip:

"Avoid using lighted candles."

Over 15,000 residential fires and 150 deaths occur each year in the United states due to fires started by candles.  In a blackout, the use of candles to provide light significantly increases the chances of starting a house fire.  The irony is that the same conditions that caused the blackout in the first place (severe storms) can often delay firefighters in responding to a house fire.

While there are safety tips for use of candles in the home, it is better to avoid them altogether when planning for any emergency, including a blackout.  Some emergency kit manufacturers include candles in their emergency kits, but we do not use them as we think there are better alternatives that do not pose a fire risk.  We have also been guided by the fact that the Amerian Red Cross discourages their use in a blackout because of the fire hazard.

When I was growing up overseas in the Philippines, we had a lot of blackouts.  We typically responded with a combination of candles, kerosene lanterns, and flashlights. While flashlights remain a good solution and battery or crank driven lanterns are another alternative with no associated fire risk, I never use candles or fuel burning lanterns indoors today in the case of an emergency.  There is really no reason to use candles if one is prepared with appropriate alternatives.

If you have a hard time keeping batteries on hand or you don't want to have to "crank" for your light, the best alternative to candles is to use glowing light sticks.  One can find good quality light sticks that will last for up to 12 hours in any camping supply store or on-line from any emergency preparedness company.  Avoid the toy-grade light sticks often sold around Halloween time.

At LifeSecure.com we sell military-grade 12-hour light sticks and pack them in most of our emergency kits because they are:

• non-flammable (generate no heat or spark)

• non-toxic (so they are safe for children to use)

• waterproof (so they can be used in any weather conditions)

We also like the fact that they have a long shelf life - certified to last for 4 years - and are extremely easy to use.  Just bend them in half and the non-toxic chemicals mix and you have instant light.  Most military or emergency grade glowing light sticks put out about as much light as a typical candle.  I have read with them in the dark as well as moved around a dark house with ease.

In a blackout you can easily put one in each room or move them with you for light.  There is no need to shield a flame as you move, keep children and pets away from them, worry about leaving them unattended, or to remember to blow them out when you go to sleep.  I have found that the green (or yellow) glow is actually comforting to children and it is easy for each child to have their own light in a blackout situation.

I also like that they are very thin and compact and many are designed to be worn on a lanyard or hung from a hook or nail if desired.  They are compact enough to stick an extra few just about anywhere you might need them.

I keep several on hand in the house, in my car, and in each of my 72 hour emergency kits.  I always feel better prepared with a combination of a flashlight and some light sticks to provide an instant, reliable source of light.  I have picked up many flashlights in my life only to be disappointed that the batteries were dead, but I have never had this issue with a light stick.  As long as it is within its dating, you don't have to worry about whether its power will be drained when you need it most.

At about $1.50 or so each, they really are a great and affordable emergency lighting solution for a blackout or any other emergency at home, at work, at school or on-the-go.

Every Life Secure
An Emergency Preparedness Blog helping to make "Every Life Secure" in any emergency or disaster... at home, work, school, or on-the-go

Secure Suvivor from Latin America - Emergency Preparation Saves the Family

This week I presented a seminar on emergency preparedness and 72 hour emergency kits to an inner city hispanic church congregation.  Their women's auxiliary had asked me to help their group learn how to prepare for potential disasters.  As we started, several people in the audience shared their secure survivor stories.  Given that most of the participants had grown up in Latin America, all but one person in the audience had experienced some type of man-made or natural disaster at some point in their lives.

One story that stood out for me was told by a 40-something year old mother of three who had grown up in a Central American country but has been living here in the United States and raising her family for the last several years.  When she was a teenage girl, her family had been warned that they needed to prepare for an emergency by having food, water and other basics on hand to last for several days.  As a teenager, she had paid little attention to the warnings and found them annoying.  Luckily her parents heeded the warnings and did prepare by storing some basic emergency supplies for survival.

Without warning, her family awoke one day to serious political violence in their city.  They were forced to stay in their home for over a week as people were being shot in the streets by one faction or another.  She knew people who had not prepared for an emergency and had thus quickly run out of food.  When the violence extended beyond just a few days, these families were forced to send family members out to try and find food.  Some of those who went to get food never came back because they were caught in the streets, shot, and killed.

She and her family remained safe inside their home until the violence had subsided.  They were able to safely shelter-in-place because they were prepared in advance of any indication that there was about to be a life-threatening emergency  Their was no need to convince this mother of three to be prepared with basic emergency supplies in case of a disaster.  She was there at my class to learn how to improve upon the supplies she already had rather than to be persuaded to prepare for an emergency.

I find that those who have been through some kind severe emergency or disaster have the need to be prepared pressed into their minds for the rest of their lives.  This is true whether they were well prepared at the time or they had to suffer in some manner because of lack of preparation.  I also find that sharing such stories can help to motivate those who have yet to experience a disaster or severe emergency to become prepared. 

These stories can also share key insight into how to best prepare for certain kinds of disasters.  In this case, having basic supplies (such as extra food) to shelter-in-place for several days was key to the survival of this lady's family.

Do you have a secure survivor story?  If so, please share it with us by commenting or emailing me at [email protected].  How did you survive a disaster or emergency and what did you learn from the experience that might help others?

Every Life Secure
An Emergency Preparedness Blog helping to make "Every Life Secure" in any emergency or disaster... at home, work, school, or on-the-go