Just in Case (31 page)

Wool blankets

Space blankets

Rain ponchos

Emergency cell phone (even if you don’t have a regular cell phone, one of the inexpensive pay-as-you-go phones will allow you to make an emergency call if stranded)

GPS (global positioning system) receiver

Baby supplies, if you have a young child (diapers, baby food, and so on)

Energy bars

Waterproof matches

Hot packs

Sunscreen and insect repellent in summer

Because we live in a section of the country with severe winter weather, I never leave the house in the winter without full winter gear for everyone, including hats, coats, snow pants, gloves, and boots. The kids don’t have to wear everything, but they do need to have it available.

TRAVELING SAFELY

A
FEW PRECAUTIONS WILL
make all travel safer, especially if you plan to travel some distance from home or in remote areas.

• Leave your itinerary with someone before setting out, and agree on a daily check-in time.

• Stick to your route.

• Start with a full tank of gas and fill up when the tank is half empty.

• If the weather is iffy, stay home.

• If you find yourself stranded, stay with your car. It’s the safest place and the easiest to keep warm in. It is also likely to be found well before a person wandering in the woods will be.

• If you run out of water and are contemplating eating snow, don’t. Take the time to use your stove to melt the snow for drinking, as eating snow will lower your body temperature.

• Don’t ration food too sharply or restrict it to children. It’s a noble idea but foolhardy in the long run. Your children will need you at your best if you are going to care for them. A couple of high-calorie energy bars and water every day will keep you going for several days without too much physical stress.

• If you hear other vehicles or people nearby, stay put and use your whistle or flares to signal rescuers.

• If you hear or see search planes, use your road flares as a signal. Your spare tire will make a good, smoky signal fire as well.

I used to get teased a bit about my concern over car and travel safety, but the winter of 2006-2007 put an end to that. People were stranded in record numbers and for record amounts of time as violent storms swept the country. All of a sudden, keeping a spare blanket and some emergency food and water in your car no longer seemed like such a radical idea.

BETTER SAFE THAN BOGGED DOWN IN TRAFFIC

It is seldom wise to put off leaving your home if a disaster seems likely. It is far easier to leave and return when the immediate danger is past than it is to wait until the last minute and do battle with the crowd of others who did the same thing.

CHAPTER 9 EVACUATION

Anyone interested enough in self-sufficiency to read this book would probably want to prepare his or her home well enough to stay there in an emergency, rather than evacuate. Familiar and comfortable surroundings can make any crisis situation easier to handle. Still, there are times when staying home is simply not possible. You must, of course, rely on your own judgment, but it is never wise to ignore a mandatory evacuation warning, especially when you are also making the decision for your children. Mandatory evacuations happen hundreds of times each year, so it is wise to think about how to prepare for such an event.